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Hand wash and sanitiser are flying off Bay of Plenty supermarket shelves but a retail spokesman says there is no need to panic buy.
New Zealanders began panic-buying water, hand sanitiser and other essentials after New Zealand's first Covid-19 case was confirmed at the end of February.
After travel restrictionswere tightened over the weekend, Bay of Plenty supermarkets started noticing the trend.
New World Mount Maunganui had only been hit in the last three days and shelves emptied quickly and needed restocking more often, owner Allan Rudkin said.
"Pasta, tinned food, even chocolate and crackers, you name it."
There had also been a rise in the number of customers ordering online for delivery or pick up and Rudkin said this could be further implemented if the situation worsened.
New World Mount Maunganui has noticed a spike in online shopping since Saturday. Photo / File
"As long as we can service the community, then we will. Depending on how severe the area is hit, if it becomes severe, then we've got to make decisions."
Four Square Ngongotahā co-owner Crystal Plummer said there would be an impact in sales as "a lot" of their customers were international travellers using local Airbnbs.
The store ran out of hand sanitiser in mid-February but "we've still got plenty of toilet paper", Plummer said.
She said non-perishable sales had gone up and people had become hyper-aware of hygiene so the store was being more vocal about what they were doing.
"People want to be sure."
Although they had no immediate plans to stockpile goods, they would monitor the situation.
Foodstuffs head of corporate affairs Antoinette Laird said demand for most groceries was up across New Zealand but the company had robust plans to ensure grocery needs were met.
"If customers continue to shop normally, we are well-positioned to provide New Zealanders with their everyday grocery needs."
Pāpāmoa resident Jessica Rose said she'd had enough of people panic buying after noticing shelves emptied of pantry staples, cleaning supplies and health products including bread, hand sanitiser, tissues, fish oil, paracetamol and vitamin C tablets.
She had noticed the bare shelves in Pāpāmoa and Bayfair and had to go to multiple shops to find hand wash but the panic buying had not otherwise impacted the way she shopped.
"My thoughts on people panic buying are simple - stop ... No one is going to let us starve or go without."
Four Square Pāpāmoa Beach had run out of hand sanitiser and noticed an increase in sales of multi-purpose cleaners and hand soaps in the last week so had brought in more stock to meet demand.
Toilet paper and non-perishable sales had been higher than usual but the current stock level was nothing they were concerned about at this stage, manager Simon Chuiah said.
"The problem is more storage space."
The store was sanitising trolley and basket handles to make customers confident and was reviewing long-term options.
If the situation worsened, opening hours may be reduced.
Retail New Zealand chief executive Greg Harford said the main questions from store owners were around cash-flow and staffing.
"The issue we've got at the moment is the demand is a little bit unpredictable with people racing out and wanting to stock up on things."
He likened the high demand to the Christmas period.
"Retailers spend months planning Christmas but it's like Christmas is happening all at once, all of a sudden."
He said retail worked on a "just-in-time" model and retailers were predicting how much stock they would need to have.
"Product is going to keep being shipped ... There's just no need to be panic buying."
