“It is slightly depressing as a journalist to constantly be talking about liquidations and companies going under,” he says.
“The wider impact of it is the families behind them. These are mainly family-run businesses with staff who also have their own families. There is a massive domino effect.”
Raynel says the reports he sees tell two stories.
Some owners are cautious, see the problems building and get out early, with debts of less than $50,000.
Others leave him asking how they let it go so long: sometimes owing millions, particularly to the IRD.
In some cases this was down to Covid-era small business loans coming back to bite them, he says.
The pressures are the same for almost everyone: fuel, freight and shipping, Raynel says.
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