End of an era approaches for Taupō supermarket

Taupō's new Woolworths store will boast a pharmacy, liquor store and a much larger shop floor.

December 1960 was an eventful month; Keith Holyoake became Prime Minister of New Zealand, the first episode of Coronation Street was aired, and Taupō welcomed its first Woolworths store.

Sixty-three years and a doubled population later, Countdown Taupō Central has announced it will close on October 1, to allow building work to begin on a new store.

This date has been pushed back a few times due to unavoidable delays, said store manager Jess Stubbs, but was now confirmed for the beginning of next month.

“There were issues around global supply around Covid.”

“Then Cyclone Gabrielle took a lot of resources out of the country.”

The new supermarket, which will open under the Woolworths name as part of a company-wide rebrand, should be ready in about 18 months.

While the store was being rebuilt, staff would be relocated to the Countdown Taupō South location, so there would be no job losses.

Those staff would be trained for roles in the new Central store, which required up to 50 more staff, Stubbs said.

“All their contracted hours are guaranteed in the new store.”

“While we’re rebuilding this one, we’ll do a lot of development in the teams.”

The new supermarket building would be a substantial upgrade from the existing one, with the shop floor about 50 per cent larger.

The addition of an underground car park would see the number of parks increase from 154 to 278, including four campervan spaces and several EV charging spots.

With Taupō continuing to grow as both a place to live and a tourist destination, adding capacity for cars and people alike was a no-brainer, Stubbs said.

“The biggest thing about this new store coming is the car parks - it’ll make a huge difference in the peak season.”

The new Taupo Central Countdown store will feature closed chillers, which are more eco-friendly. Photo / Abby Dance

Shoppers have already had a peek at some of the proposed interior changes, which will be similar to those in the Taupō South location.

This would include more energy-efficient chillers with doors, and electronic shelf labels replacing paper tickets.

The Central location would also include a liquor store and a pharmacy.

The store’s increased size meant there would be a wider range of products on offer, too.

Customers would have a better shopping experience all around, as the design would have the modern shopper’s needs in mind, Stubbs said.

Ultimately, it was high time for a refresh as the current premises became increasingly unfit for purpose.

“This store is 63 years old - small and compact, it doesn’t have a great flow.”

“The building’s had its time.”

Stubbs said there was excitement from staff and customers alike at the prospect of Taupō boasting two new supermarkets.

But first, they would farewell the store with a staff lunch, and look back fondly on the building’s 63-year history.