A commercial address on Dartmore Rd, Puketapu, was targeted for robbery by a 25 year-old man allegedly wielding a knife.
Police responded to the incident on Saturday at 5.15pm, and the man was taken into custody soon after.
The man took a quantity of cigarettes and left the scene in a vehicle.
Police quickly located the vehicle which was abandoned on Livingstone Rd, Flaxmere.
An officer chased the man on foot and took him into custody.