The winter cold sent shoppers indoors to malls, helping boost clothing sales for May, Statistics New Zealand figures show.
Clothing and soft goods retail sales figures for May increased 12.6%, or $25 million, on the previous month - the largest monthly increase since the retail statistics series began in May 1995.
"This unprecedented increase coincided with what has been described as an early start to winter.
"Compared with typical May months, most of the country has experienced above-average rainfall and well below-average temperatures," government statistician Geoff Bascand said.
ASB economist Jane Turner said while clothing was a stand-out, strength was also evident in appliance and hardware retailing.
Those categories were tied to the housing market.
Some improvement likely came on the back of some recovery in house sales during April and May.
Total retail sales figures for May increased 0.8%, or by $41 million, on those of April, with supermarket and grocery stores also gaining, up 2.2% or by $27 million on figures for April.
The increases in the two core industries offset a fall in vehicle-related industries, with fuel retailers reporting a drop in sales of 2.7%, or $14 million, and motor vehicle retailers selling $10 million less, or 1.4%, worth of automobiles.
Mr Bascand said sales by region for the month were mixed, slightly up in the South Island, while slightly down in the North.
"The trend in total sales has been in general decline since January 2008, but has currently flattened," he said.
Otago Chamber of Commerce chief executive John Christie said the SNZ figures backed up recent survey results from the chamber.
Clothing retailers had reported strong sales which was good news for some in an industry finding things tough at this time of the year.
"It seems customers are spending on the necessities of life," Mr Christie said.
Anecdotal evidence suggested people in Otago were dining out less.
Instead, they were buying better cuts of meat and better quality wine and staying at home.
That was a substantial shift in consumer behaviour which would have spin-offs - good and bad - for regional retailers, he said.
Ms Turner said electronic card transaction data suggested the strength during May was likely to be a one-off, pointing to a fall in spending in June.
"This pattern would be consistent with bad weather bringing forward winter-related purchases.
"Looking through the clothing one-off and housing-related spending, the retail trade survey suggests that underlying consumer demand remains reasonably subdued."
Despite tax cuts and lower mortgage rates, consumer sentiment remained benign as households adjusted to a fall in net wealth and a less secure employment outlook, she said.
