Foodtown supermarkets in Green Lane and Grey Lynn hope soon to be selling beer and wine 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Supermarket owner Progressive Enterprises has applied to the Liquor Licensing Authority for permission to sell alcohol round the clock at the two stores, which are open 24
hours.
Under their current licences, they must stop selling alcohol at midnight during the week and at 10 pm on Sundays.
"Our frustration at the moment is that customers who come into our stores at quarter to 12 but don't get to the checkout till quarter past 12 are being told that they can't purchase the liquor," said Progressive managing director Ted van Arkel. La Vino, near Grey Lynn Foodtown, said allowing supermarkets to open 24 hours would be a double standard.
Peter Ivicevich said if he wanted to open any later than 11 pm, the police would object and the Liquor Licensing Authority would turn it down.
Progressive applied for the new licences after the High Court in Wellington last month allowed two Wellington Pak N' Save supermarkets to sell alcohol for 22 hours of the day.
These supermarkets had their applications for longer hours refused by the Liquor Licensing Authority, but appealed that decision to the High Court.
Police did not object to the Wellington supermarkets selling alcohol through the night, but local health officials and a Safer Community Council did not want the change.
Mr van Arkel said Progressive's application to sell alcohol 24 hours a day had been with the Liquor Licensing Authority for two weeks and he hoped to hear from them in next few weeks.
If the application was successful and there were no further appeals, the supermarkets could extend alcohol trading hours almost immediately.
