Kiwi homeware retailer Redcurrent is the latest Covid-related casualty in the retail sector, today being placed in liquidation after 25 years in business.

Insolvency specialists from EY were appointed as liquidators at the bequest of Redcurrent’s shareholders, based in Hawke’s Bay.

EY New Zealand associate partner Rhys Cain said at this stage two Redcurrent stores (Auckland and Christchurch) plus the online store would stay open for trading.

But the Wellington and Havelock North stores will close immediately and its Queenstown store is scheduled to close on February 28.

The retailer closed its Dunedin store in March last year.

“We are seeking urgent expressions of interest for the business assets and working closely with the management team to quickly establish options for a way forward for the business,” Cain said.

“In the meantime, both the online business and the stores will be trading stock at attractive sale prices for customers,” he said.

EY said Redcurrent director Rebecca Kain is working closely with liquidators to achieve the best possible outcome for loyal Redcurrent staff, customers and suppliers.

Redcurrent director/shareholder Rebecca Kain. Photo / Babiche Martens

“After working our hardest to counter these headwinds we recognise that the chosen path is the best course of action, as hard as that is for all concerned,” Kain said.

She said Covid-19 has had “lingering effects” on the business.

The retailer went on a rent strike during the nation’s first national lockdown in 2020 after losing an estimated $1 million over six weeks.

Kain started Redcurrent with her mother Audrey McHardy in Havelock North, Hawke’s Bay in the late 1990s, expanding to Auckland’s Ponsonby in 1999, with subsequent shops in Wellington and Christchurch.

The retailers sourced their products from NZ and overseas, eventually setting up a warehouse in Napier to cope with imports.

Redcurrent’s liquidation announcement follows that of NZ homeware retailers Nido and Inspiry.

“After working our hardest to counter these headwinds we recognise that the chosen path is the best course of action, as hard as that is for all concerned,” Kain said.