2025 in Review: Standout Projects, Industry Insights & Growth | Total Fitouts
2025 in Review: Standout Projects, Industry Insights & Growth | Total Fitouts
As 2025 winds down, we at Total Fitouts are proud to reflect on a year of creativity, growth, and transformation. Across New Zealand, our teams have turned blank tenancies into bespoke spaces: restaurants that invite conversation, retail stores that showcase brand identity, play areas that spark imagination, and fitness outlets built for performance.
This year wasn’t just about building spaces, it was about building experiences. Alongside our 2025 projects, we continued sharing expert insights through our blog, and strengthened our community with our company-wide conference.
Below is a look back at some of our standout NZ projects from 2025, a glance at our most-read blog posts, and a reminder of why being part of the Total Fitouts family is so special.
Standout 2025 Projects Across NZ
North Beach, Tower Junction – fitout by Total Fitouts Bay of Plenty
The North Beach store at Christchurch’s Tower Junction received a bold, contemporary fitout designed to showcase the brand’s energetic identity and enhance the customer experience.
The exterior draws attention with striking, bold colours and floor-to-ceiling glazed shopfronts, maximising natural light and creating a seamless connection to the retail centre. Inside, a mix of materials and textures sets the tone: warm timber accents balance exposed industrial ceilings, while engineered flooring guides customers through key merchandise zones. Feature joinery and thoughtfully designed displays highlight products, encouraging intuitive browsing and showcasing North Beach’s diverse apparel range.
Durable finishes and strategically placed signage ensure the space is both functional and visually striking. The fitout successfully blends bold design with practical retail solutions, creating a modern, welcoming, and memorable environment that reflects the North Beach brand and elevates the shopping experience at Tower Junction.
Play Park Tauranga Crossing — Bay of Plenty
At Tauranga Crossing, our Bay of Plenty team delivered a complete refresh of the Play Park — a space kids love and parents appreciate.
The refreshed design draws on nature and imagination: a bespoke sculptural “tree” stands at the heart of the space — its canopies providing shelter, its trunk doubling as seating and bookshelf. Warm wood-effect panelling, calming greens, soft synthetic grass flooring, and playful shapes create a safe, welcoming environment for children.
Play equipment (from soft-play slides to a wooden train structure) is a mix of natural and durable materials: designed to last, designed for fun. Lighting adds to the magic, with whimsical cloud-shaped fixtures overhead that soften the space and spark imagination.
Despite a tight timeframe and high community expectations, the project was delivered on schedule — a testament to our team’s expertise and commitment to quality.
Naveya & Sloane — South Canterbury
For Naveya & Sloane, we created a flagship boutique in Christchurch that’s more than a store — it’s a refined experience.
The fitout centres around natural light: large, multi-paned windows let daylight flood the showroom, making each gemstone sparkle. Polished timber floors, crisp white walls, and classic decorative mouldings preserve a sense of heritage, while clean lines and minimalist joinery keep the space modern and fresh.
Custom display cases frame each item in glass and subtle brass detail, with integrated lighting that ensures every piece catches the eye. Seating areas with curved sofas, plush armchairs, and soft rugs invite clients to sit, consider, and enjoy the boutique’s calm ambience.
Large plants, contemporary artwork, and a strategic, fluid layout complete the picture: a luxury retail environment where clients feel valued, comfortable, and immersed in the brand’s identity.
NZ Muscle — South Canterbury
For NZ Muscle’s Papanui store, our South Canterbury team delivered a fitout that mirrors the brand’s energy: sharp, modern, and purpose-built.
The interior uses a monochrome palette — matte black trims, white joinery — giving the vibrant supplement packaging space to shine. Built-in cube-style shelving wraps the perimeter, while modular display plinths sit in the centre for featured or promotional items.
Polished concrete floors add industrial strength and durability — perfect for high foot traffic. The layout guides customers through a natural U-shaped flow, making browsing intuitive and efficient. Large lifestyle images featuring athletes keep the mood energetic, while integrated fridges for recovery drinks highlight practical retail thinking.
The result: a clean, high-performing store interior that functions as much as it reflects the brand’s identity.
Hanoi 90’s — South Canterbury
In Rolleston, Hanoi 90’s was brought to life. A restaurant designed to immerse guests in the sights, textures, and warmth of Hanoi’s vibrant street laneways.
The interior uses a rich palette: weathered ochres, sun-faded yellows, burnt sienna, and turquoise accents evoke Southeast-Asian ambiance. Textured walls, layered paint effects, aged render finishes, and street-style shutters with vines combine to replicate the charm and spirit of Hanoi.
Lighting plays a big role in the story. Woven rattan and bamboo pendant lights hang from exposed ceilings, casting a warm golden glow that shifts as day becomes night — pairing perfectly with the rustic finishes and creating an intimate, market-like atmosphere.
Furniture is both functional and characterful: cane-backed bentwood café chairs, timber tabletops, built-in booths, and floral touches blend comfort with cultural charm. Open layout supports both small and larger groups, while service areas are designed for efficiency without breaking the immersive aesthetic.
This fitout doesn’t just serve food. It serves a journey, a sensory experience rooted in heritage, culture, and thoughtful design.
Our Industry Voice: Popular Blog Content in 2025
Beyond bricks and mortar, Total Fitouts NZ continued to share expertise, trends, and practical advice via our blog. Some of the most popular posts this year included:
- Retail Fitout Advice: How to design store spaces that align with brand identity and deliver a smooth customer experience — whether it’s supplements, jewellery, or restaurants.
- Lighting & Interior Trends 2025: Exploring how lighting, joinery, and materials influence mood, brand presence, and functionality — crucial for hospitality and retail environments.
- Wellness & Commercial Fitouts: Practical guidance for businesses in health, wellness, or fitness sectors, covering layout, privacy, ambience, and flow to create comfortable, functional client experiences.
- Play & Community Spaces: Best practices for creating play or family-friendly areas — balancing safety, durability, creativity, and atmosphere.
Through these posts, we’ve continued to position Total Fitouts not just as builders, but as trusted advisors for businesses thinking strategically about their space, brand, and future growth. Read our blog here!
Bringing the Community Together — International 2025 Conference in Noosa
One of the absolute highlights of 2025 was the Total Fitouts 2025 International Conference — hosted in the beautiful coastal hinterland of Noosa, QLD, Australia. Over three action-packed days, our franchise partners, teams and suppliers gathered not just to learn, but to share, connect, and celebrate our collective achievements.
Day One — A Warm (and Playful) Welcome
We kicked off with a 1:30 PM check-in as our partners arrived and got their itineraries for the coming days. The official welcome party quickly set the tone: a fun, themed “pirate night” aboard the scenic Noosa Catalina, as the sun set over the Noosa River. The energy was high, laughter was plenty, and it was an unforgettable way to re-connect — all thanks to the generosity of one of our key sponsors, About Space Lighting.
Day Two — Inspiration, Learning, and Celebration
Day Two was all business (and a little bit of fun). Hosted by MC Joel Ozborn — returning this year with his trademark humour — the day featured a series of inspiring talks from industry-leading guest speakers including Billy Moore, Anthony Laye, Xavier Rousset (of In Focus Workshop), and Michael Peterson (from Pivotus). Their insights covered trends, best practices and strategies to help our network thrive in 2026 and beyond.
We also hosted our “Supplier Showdown,” where eight of our valued suppliers — including About Space Lighting, Silverchef, Remer Mirrors Australia, Panellam, Stiebel Eltron Australia, OLG Office, Mission Technology Solutions and Benjamin & Benjamin Insurance Group — shared how their products and services help support our network’s growth. It was a fantastic opportunity for franchise partners to build relationships and explore new supplier offerings.
Throughout the day, Joel kept spirits high with impromptu games and light-hearted challenges — even putting some of our Directors on the spot. It made for a great balance of learning, networking, and fun.
Day Three — Team Building, Relaxation & Celebration
The final day began bright and early with an “Amazing Race”-style challenge. Ten teams competed in fast-paced activities — a lively and energising way to kick off the morning.
After the rush, it was time to unwind: we headed to a lunch in the lush hinterland of Doonan, taking in the natural beauty of the Sunshine Coast hinterland. The scenery was as impressive as the conversation.
In the afternoon, we enjoyed a friendly round of Par 3 golf at Noosa Hills Golf Course — a relaxed setting that gave everyone a break from business talk, some fresh air, and good laughs.
We wrapped the conference with a farewell party at El Capita Noosa — good food, great company, and a chance to reflect, celebrate, and look ahead. It was a perfect ending to a meaningful, energising, and productive few days.
All in all, the Noosa Conference was a reminder that beyond bricks and mortar, Total Fitouts is first and foremost about people — about community, collaboration, and shared success.
Looking Forward — 2026 and Beyond
2025 has reinforced why we do what we do: helping businesses, brands, and communities in New Zealand thrive through thoughtful design and expert execution. With a diverse portfolio under our belt — from restaurants, retail stores, and fitness outlets, to family spaces and luxury boutiques — we’re more ready than ever for what’s next.
If you’ve been dreaming about transforming your space — be it a café, restaurant, retail store, wellness centre, gym, or bespoke interior — we’d love to help bring that vision to life.