Rebel Sport general manager Rod Duke told reporters in Auckland today the decision was a direct result of adidas refusing to back down on price.
A replica All Black World Cup jersey is available for $220 in New Zealand retail stores, but listed for sale at $US79.99 ($NZ92.68) on the website www.worldrugby.com.
After Mr Duke earlier said the price was "not damn fair", he said today the company would cut the World Cup jersey price from $220 to $170. The standard All Black replica jersey would drop from $189.99 to $149.50.
"It was intolerable for New Zealanders to pay more for All Black jerseys than almost any other country in the world," Mr Duke said.
"We happen to believe that this jersey belongs to the New Zealand rugby public."
On top of adidas' decision to keep the price the same, the company has also blocked online sales to New Zealanders from the worldrugby website.
Website spokeswoman Tanya Hoston told One News adidas' distribution policies "limit our sale of this product outside the United States".
Asked if adidas told the site to remove New Zealand from the distribution list, she said: "From the information I'm receiving, I believe that is true."
The company's position prompted a scathing response from Labour leader Phil Goff who said adidas was exploiting its market position by hiking up prices.
"It just defies belief for adidas to say that they're charging double the price that you can get the same article on the net because they want to support New Zealand rugby," he said.
"We want New Zealanders to be able to show our colours by wearing that jersey, it's outrageous that any company can force up the price to the extent they are with that margin.
"If anything, they should be discounting it to encourage New Zealanders to show their support for the All Blacks."
Prime Minister John Key slightly stepped back from the issue, saying he would like to believe that New Zealanders were get a fair deal "...but in the end the end it's a commercial matter".
Former All Black legend Colin Meads today described the price of the jerseys as "astronomical".
Adidas New Zealand manager David Huggett said it understood the concerns but would stick by its retail price.
"We're comfortable our price to the local retail trade is a reasonable one," Mr Huggett said last night.
The price was comparable to that of other replica jerseys, he said.
"Larger retail markets like the United Kingdom and United States often have lower retail cost structures," Mr Huggett said.
He said the price of the All Blacks' replica had not changed since May 2009, with the exception of the GST increase last year.
Mr Huggett said fans knew they were supporting New Zealand rugby when they bought the jersey.
"We invest millions of dollars in Kiwi rugby from grassroots through to the All Blacks, including a major investment in the state-of-the-art All Black jersey."
