Beddis picked up the nearest implement, a broom, and told the offender he was not going to concede.
"I'm not going to give money to people that haven't earned it."
The manager received injuries to his face and hand from the hammer after the offender lunged at Beddis, who took a swing at him and a struggle ensued.
"I wish the hit connected but it didn't.
"I bailed him to the middle of the workshop, he saw that I wasn't going to back down so he flung the hammer at me and legged it."
Beddis said he felt fine but had been a bit shaken when it first happened and thought it would hit him when he got home.
"The buttons of the cellphone felt a bit small when I was trying to ring the cops."
Beddis had been sole charge of the yard for about four-and-a-half years and nothing like this had ever happened, he said.
The offender left the scene on foot down Cook St towards SH2 and was described as a Maori, aged 19-20 years, 1.7m (5ft 10) and of stocky build.
He was wearing a black hoodie, possibly with white stripes down the sleeves, tight black pants and a woven black scarf covering his lower face. He was also wearing dark sunglasses.
A traffic unit and two dog units from Hastings scoured Waipukurau searching for the man, but a police spokesman said on Friday he was yet to be found.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to phone Detective Mike Signal or Detective Constable Damon Horrocks of Hastings police, on 06 873 0500.
Crime victimisations
Compared to thefts and burglaries, aggravated robberies are relatively uncommon in CHB, according to police crime data compiled by the NZ Herald.
There were just five aggravated robberies in Waipukurau and two in Waipawa between July 2014 and July 2016, according to the figures.
Unlawful entries, burglaries and break-and-enters were the most recorded crimes in CHB out of the 17 different categories included in the data. Interestingly, there were no reported crimes in CHB in two categories: theft of a motor vehicle and non-aggravated robbery.
Nationally, more than 400,000 people reported becoming the victim of a crime at least once during the period.
Number of crime victimisations in CHB between July 2014 to July 2016.
Unlawful Entry With Intent/Burglary, Break and Enter
Waipukurau: 146; Waipawa: 70; Otane: 13, Takapau: 23, Tikokino: 93, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 121, Poukawa: 67.
Theft of Motor Vehicle Parts or Contents
Waipukurau: 29, Waipawa: 8, Otane: 4, Takapau: 2, Tikokino: 12, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 11, Poukawa: 5.
Theft From Retail Premises
Waipukurau: 64, Waipawa: 12, Otane: 0, Takapau: 0, Tikokino: 0, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 0, Poukawa: 0.
Theft (Except Motor Vehicles)
Waipukurau: 112, Waipawa: 49, Otane: 2, Takapau: 5, Tikokino: 33, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 26, Poukawa: 10.
Common Assault
Waipukurau: 36, Waipawa: 13, Otane: 3, Takapau: 4, Tikokino: 6, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 7, Poukawa: 1.
Illegal Use of a Motor Vehicle
Waipukurau: 26, Waipawa: 13, Otane: 4, Takapau: 1, Tikokino: 18, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 11, Poukawa: 13.
Aggravated Robbery
Waipukurau: 5, Waipawa: 2, Otane: 0, Takapau: 0, Tikokino: 0, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 0, Poukawa: 0.
Serious Assault Resulting in Injury
Waipukurau: 9, Waipawa: 4, Otane: 0, Takapau: 2, Tikokino: 0, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 2, Poukawa: 2.
Serious Assault Not Resulting in Injury
Waipukurau: 23, Waipawa: 7, Otane: 0, Takapau: 2, Tikokino: 2, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 1, Poukawa: 1.
Aggravated Sexual Assault
Waipukurau: 2, Waipawa: 0, Otane: 0, Takapau: 0, Tikokino: 0, Elsthorpe-Flemington: 2, Poukawa: 1.
Illegal Use of Property (Except Motor Vehicles)
Waipukurau: 4.
Blackmail and Extortion
Waipukurau: 1.
Abduction and Kidnapping
Waipukurau: 1.
Non-Aggravated Sexual Assault
Tikokino: 1
Theft From a Person (Excluding By Force)
Tikokino: 1.
