Rozcraft reusable mask-making business owner Roz Hunt and worker Fran Cameron. Photo / Caroline Fleming
Rozcraft reusable mask-making business owner Roz Hunt and worker Fran Cameron. Photo / Caroline Fleming
Masks were flying off the shelves in Tauranga as long lines formed outside pharmacies from the minute they opened their doors.
Surgical masks were selling like hotcakes, while pharmacies tried to source reusable options. Meanwhile, mask makers were "running around like bees in a bottle".
Unichem Brookfield Pharmacy owner HelenGregory said people had been lining up out the door since 8.30am for masks and every phone call was asking after them.
"It's just absolutely crazy ... we are nearly sold out."
She said they only sold surgical masks as others were hard to come by. It was good that people were being safe and jumping straight into prevention, she said.
They had just secured an order of reusable masks this morning and reminded people they needed to be hot washed every night, she said. They would be getting them in the next week or two.
Rotorua reusable mask-making business Rozcraft has a team of 10 women working around the clock trying to keep up with the "thousands" of mask orders received in the past couple of days.
Owner Roz Hunt said they used to make Kiwiana souvenirs but lost 90 per cent of business when the borders closed.
She decided to move to make reusable masks in lockdown and her team of one moved to a team of 10, she said.
"We have been fairly manic for a while now," she said. They had been selling masks to Australia for the past few months and it had been "astronomical".
The team was pumping out hundreds of masks a day. An expert sewer was able to make a mask every five minutes.
There was an elastic shortage, but Hunt said she was getting around it with her stocks.
The business was providing local pharmacies with reusable masks and they were in hot demand.
A Bay of Plenty pharmacy worker said they had already sold out of masks and were desperately waiting on more stock.
He said more than 50 per cent of the morning's customers came in to get a mask for themselves and their families.
He said masks were "so difficult" to source at the moment.
