Court documents allege the three men robbed the service station of cash and cigarettes, stole $130 of petrol from the same station and also stole $111.42 of petrol from Caltex Tauriko. Tauranga Z Service Station owner Dave Gillies said the staff member who was threatened was not harmed but was shaken by the incident and would be offered counselling and time off to deal with it.
Staff were trained to give robbers what they wanted, he said.
"It's been a long time since we've had anything like this," Mr Gillies said. "It certainly sends ripples through the team."
The three were remanded in custody until their next appearance on Thursday.
If anyone has any further information, phone acting Detective Sergeant Schrafft at the Tauranga police station on 577 4389, or Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.