Stuff (website)
| File:Stuff logo.svg Logo used since May 2022 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | News media |
| Founded | June 27, 2000 in Auckland, New Zealand |
| Founder | Don Higgins, Mark Wierzbicki |
| Headquarters | Auckland , New Zealand |
Area served | New Zealand |
| Owner | Sinead Boucher (CEO) |
| Parent | Stuff Ltd |
| Website | stuff |
Stuff is a New Zealand news media platform owned by the newspaper group Stuff Ltd (previously Fairfax). By early 2024, it had become the leading news website in New Zealand, attracting over 2 million unique visitors each month.
Established in 2000, Stuff delivers up-to-the-minute news, weather updates, sports coverage, political analysis, entertainment, business reports, and lifestyle articles. Its content draws from Stuff Ltd’s newspapers, including New Zealand’s second- and third-largest daily circulations, The Post and The Press, as well as the premier weekly Sunday Star-Times, supplemented by international news agencies.
Stuff has been recognized multiple times at the Newspaper Publishers' Association awards, securing titles such as 'Best News Website or App' in 2014 and 2019; 'Website of the Year' in 2013 and 2018; 'Best News Website' in 2019; and 'Digital News Provider of the Year' in both 2024 and 2025.
Independent Newspapers Ltd, 2000–2003
The media firm Independent Newspapers Ltd (INL), a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, launched Stuff on 27 June 2000 from Auckland after announcing plans to establish an online presence more than a year earlier. The initiative was spearheaded by Don Higgins, Corporate Development Manager, alongside Mark Wierzbicki, who served as the founding Internet Business Manager. The brand name "Stuff," created by advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi, required INL to acquire the domain from a cybersquatter. Within its inaugural month, the site recorded 120,000 unique visitors. The platform was developed by Wellington-based engineers under founding CTO Will Everitt and project manager Bill Alp, utilizing a software framework sourced from News Corp Australia’s news.com.au.
Fairfax Media and Nine Entertainment, 2003–2020
On 30 June 2003, INL divested its publishing division—including The Dominion Post, The Press, and the Stuff website—to Fairfax Media. Fairfax undertook website upgrades for Stuff in December 2006 and again in March 2009, incorporating homepage personalization capabilities. In 2003, Stuff debuted its initial mobile news service through collaboration with Vodafone New Zealand and subsequently launched a dedicated mobile site in April 2009.
On 1 February 2018, Fairfax New Zealand Limited rebranded itself as Stuff Limited. Later that year in July, Stuff became part of Nine Entertainment following a major consolidation within the Australasian media sector.
Sinead Boucher, 2020–present
On 25 May 2020, Nine Entertainment sold Stuff along with its assets—including the Stuff website—to CEO Sinead Boucher for NZ$1. The transaction was finalized on 31 May, returning ownership of the company to New Zealand hands.
On 30 May 2022, Stuff updated its logo along with its brand color scheme.
On 27 April 2023, Stuff revealed plans to introduce subscription-based websites for three newspapers: The Post, The Press, and Waikato Times, while maintaining the main Stuff news site as free access.
On 17 January 2024, Stuff rolled out a revamped website and app that encountered considerable user dissatisfaction due to removal of features such as search functionality and technology sections. Additionally, technical problems caused homepage loading loops. The response was largely negative with reported declines in traffic reaching up to 20%.
On 6 October 2024, Janine Fenwick, Head of Growth at Stuff Digital, announced a restructuring of regional news coverage: North Island titles Taranaki Daily News, Manawatu Standard, and Wairarapa Times-Age would be consolidated under The Post website; South Island titles including The Southland Times, Nelson Mail, Timaru Herald, and Marlborough Express would be grouped with The Press. This move aligns with Stuff Group’s paywall model offering unlimited access for NZ$1.99 per week across these platforms.
In December 2024, Stuff reorganized under its digital division known as Stuff Digital, which also encompasses social network Neighbourly and the evening news program ThreeNews. By June 2025, online marketplace Trade Me acquired a half stake in Stuff Digital along with its associated assets including the Stuff website.
Awards and nominations
Stuff.co.nz has earned numerous honors at the Newspaper Publishers' Association awards (currently known as the Voyager Media Awards), including winning Best News Website or App in both 2014 and 2019, as well as securing Website of the Year titles in 2013 and 2018.
Content and coverage
In July 2008, during the trial of Clayton Weatherston, Stuff's affiliate press.co.nz prematurely released a headline stating "Guilty of Murder" prior to the jury delivering its verdict. This mistake was publicly acknowledged by Fairfax's executive editor, Paul Thompson.
On 17 April 2013, to commemorate the legalization of same-sex marriage in New Zealand, Stuff altered its logo to feature the colors of the pride flag.
The podcast Black Hands, launched by Stuff in 2017, surpassed three million downloads and achieved the number one position in five different countries. In partnership with Radio New Zealand, Stuff also produced Gone Fishing, which was awarded podcast of the year at the 2019 NZ Radio Awards.
To enhance reporting on climate change in New Zealand, Stuff introduced Quick! Save the Planet in 2018 and subsequently joined the global Covering Climate Now initiative in 2019.
Stuff Circuit
In 2019, Stuff debuted Stuff Circuit, a documentary series focused on investigative journalism and supported by funding from New Zealand on Air. Notable films include Big Decision, which explores abortion law reform; Life + Limb, detailing New Zealand's involvement in the War in Afghanistan; False Profit, examining conspiracy theorist and New Zealand Public Party founder Billy Te Kahika; Deleted, investigating New Zealand companies connected to alleged human rights violations in Xinjiang; Disordered, covering treatment approaches for individuals with Foetal Alcohol Syndrome; and Fire and Fury, addressing vaccine misinformation following the 2022 Wellington protests. These documentaries are accessible via Stuff's website.
In November 2019, the documentary Life + Limb revealed the presence of unexploded ordnance at firing ranges used by the New Zealand Defence Force in Afghanistan, leading Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to mandate their removal.