Catch of the Day NZ Closure: Why Wesfarmers Shut It Down

If you’ve ever scored a bargain on Catch of the Day, the news that the online marketplace is shutting down might feel personal. It was one of those rare shopping sites that made daily deals feel like a small win, and this article unpacks why Wesfarmers is pulling the plug after nearly A$450 million in losses, what it means for New Zealand shoppers, and what comes next.

Founded: 2006 (Australia) ·
Acquired by Wesfarmers: 2019 ·
Rebranded to Catch: 2020 ·
Announced closure: 2024 ·
Most eaten fish in NZ (2024): Hoki

Six key metrics tell the story of Catch’s decline under Wesfarmers ownership:

Why is Catch of the Day closing down?

The Wesfarmers acquisition and its consequences

Wesfarmers bought Catch Group in 2019 for A$230 million, betting that the decade-old daily deals marketplace could become a digital anchor for the conglomerate’s retail empire (SBS News). The theory made sense: Catch had loyal users, a sophisticated logistics network, and deep data on Australian bargain hunters. But the reality was harsher.

By January 2025, Reuters reported that Wesfarmers would close Catch entirely. The company’s chief executive, Rob Scott, stated plainly that the platform would cease to operate as a stand-alone entity in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025 (Forsyth Barr / Reuters). The closure is not messy liquidation — it is a planned wind-down with costs, logistics, and a human toll already mapped out.

The implication: Wesfarmers extracted the digital capability it wanted, but the original marketplace was sacrificed in the process.

Financial performance issues

The numbers paint a bleak picture. Cumulative trading losses under Wesfarmers reached nearly A$450 million before impairments and restructuring costs (The West Australian). For the six months ending 31 December 2024, Catch was on track for an operating loss of between A$38 million and A$40 million (iTnews). Add to that one-off wind-down and transition costs of A$50 million to A$60 million, and the total bill for the five-year experiment runs well past half a billion Australian dollars (Forsyth Barr / Reuters).

Why couldn’t Catch compete? Increased competitive intensity in Australian e-commerce — particularly from Amazon Australia and the ultra-low-cost Chinese platform Temu — squeezed margins that were already thin (Times of India). Catch was caught in a pincer: too small to match Amazon’s logistics, too big to pivot cheaply, and too generic to command loyalty in a market flooded with deal sites.

Does Catch of the Day still exist?

Current status of the Catch brand in Australia and New Zealand

As of early 2025, Catch is effectively dead. The Australian marketplace is still limping through its final months of operation — the standalone business will shut down in Q4 of the 2025 financial year (Supply Chain Insights). In New Zealand, the brand’s footprint has already faded. The NZ-facing website redirects or shows the site as unavailable; Facebook pages confirm the brand is no longer active.

The geography matters here. Many NZ articles and social posts used “Catch of the Day NZ closing” as though a separate entity was shutting down, but the record shows one decision in Perth, not Wellington. The NZ market was a spillover from the Australian operation — no dedicated management, no separate P&L — so when Wesfarmers pulled the plug in Australia, New Zealanders lost access too.

What the Facebook page says

Catch New Zealand’s Facebook page — once a lively hub for flash sales — has gone silent. The last posts date to 2024, and user comments from late 2024 report orders not being fulfilled and customer support unresponsive. While no formal “farewell” post was published, the absence of activity and the inability to process new orders is as close to a death certificate as social media provides.

The pattern: Wesfarmers treated the New Zealand market as an extension of Australia, not as a standalone operation, so no separate closure announcement was ever made.

What has replaced Catch of the Day?

Alternative online deals platforms in New Zealand

For NZ bargain hunters, the most direct replacement is OneDayDeals.co.nz, a daily deals site modelled on the same flash-sale format that made Catch popular. Another option is Mighty Ape, which has absorbed some Catch product lines and suppliers post-closure (iTnews). Neither platform has Catch’s breadth, but both are NZ-focused and operational.

Other daily deal sites in Australia

In Australia, the field is more crowded. Kogan, OzBargain, and even Amazon’s own deal pages have absorbed some of Catch’s traffic. Wesfarmers itself is transferring Catch’s logistics centres to Kmart Group, which means Kmart’s online operation may inherit some of the supply-chain muscle that once powered Catch (Forsyth Barr / Reuters).

What this means: The void left by Catch will be filled by a fragmented set of alternatives, none offering the same daily-deal breadth.

What is the most eaten fish in New Zealand?

Popular seafood in New Zealand

Hoki is the most consumed fish in New Zealand, a staple in fish-and-chip shops and supermarket freezers across the country. It overtook traditional favourites like snapper and tarakihi because of its mild flavour, affordable price point, and sustainable fisheries management. Seafood is a significant part of the Kiwi diet — New Zealanders eat roughly 18 kg of seafood per person annually, well above the global average.

Health benefits of eating fish

Eating fish is linked to heart health benefits, particularly omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish like salmon and mackerel. While hoki is a leaner white fish, it still provides high-quality protein and essential nutrients like vitamin B12 and selenium. For New Zealanders looking to replace the dopamine hit of a daily Catch deal with a healthier habit, a hoki fillet is a decent swap.

The catch: While hoki is a practical everyday fish, it lacks the omega-3 punch of salmon, so health-conscious shoppers may still prefer other options.

“Wesfarmers had achieved its aim of using Catch to build e-commerce trading and data analytics expertise across its retail businesses.”

— Rob Scott, CEO of Wesfarmers, as reported by The West Australian

“The increased competitive intensity in Australian e-commerce, including Amazon and Temu, made it impossible for Catch to sustain its position.”

— Times of India (reporting on Wesfarmers’ rationale)

“Catch’s logistics centres will transition to Kmart’s control during the final quarter of FY2025.”

— Supply Chain Insights

The story of Catch of the Day is not unique — big-box acquirers often swallow nimble e-commerce startups and then discover the magic doesn’t transfer. For New Zealanders, the closure means one fewer place to find a bargain, but the deeper lesson is about concentration risk in retail. When one conglomerate controls both the marketplace and the competition (Kmart, Target, Bunnings are all Wesfarmers-owned), the consumer has fewer places to shop and less leverage. For Wesfarmers, the decision is clear: cut the loss-making experiment and double down on the brands that work. For the 190 workers losing their jobs, the cost is personal. And for New Zealand bargain hunters, the search for the next daily deal begins again.

For more retail deals and shopping guides in New Zealand, see our guide to Le Creuset Sale NZ: Best Deals, Colors, Is It Worth and our roundup of Extra Large Outdoor Pots NZ: Best Deals & Retailers.