PAK'nSAVE working closely with Surround Media and AudioPilot, is using touch screen technology which has a database of 3500 songs, specifically selected for PAK'nSAVE store environment, to choose from and includes some of New Zealand's favourite and latest music tracks. 

Jules Lloyd, Group Brand Director for Foodstuffs New Zealand says that this technology is the first of its kind in this sector.

"As far as we know, no other retail store in New Zealand has launched this technology which completely allows the customer to choose what music plays whilst they shop," she says.

"Research says that customers are happier shopping when they hear their favourite music," she explains. "And we are all about giving our customers the best experience whilst in store."

My DJ launches this weekend in selected PAK'nSAVE's throughout the country and will run for several months.

"With all the cooking shows on TV, Oamaru locals are really keen to try new types of cheeses and olives and that's led to an increasing demand for deli foods," explains Backhouse.

In what might be viewed by some as a worrying trend, there are warning signs that Southerners are becoming similar to Aucklanders - a survey of New World Northside shoppers showed that customers were especially keen to buy a takeaway espresso coffee from their store. Three employees have undergone barista training to run the store's new coffee bar.

Backhouse says, "We're pretty close to all the sports grounds in town so during the winter it'll be a good draw card to warm up if you're standing on the sidelines, plus we're the last stop heading north out of town so it's a good driver reviver if you need it."

There's also been a revamp in store which has seen the widening of the aisle between the produce and bulk foods departments, an area previously known for trolley bottle-neck.

"It was a really tight squeeze coming out of the produce department but we've opened it up and I've had loads of customers telling me how much easier it is to get around," says Backhouse.

The construction work in store was done after the supermarket closed each evening so not to impact on the customers;

 "The store's 12 years old now so it really needed an upgrade and we wanted to make it a bit more modern"

Nearly every section of the store has been given a makeover, including a new ice-bed in the seafood department, an expanded bakery range and the addition of nine gourmet cuts of meat in the butchery for customers needing a bit of inspiration.

But Backhouse says it hasn't all been a case out of 'out with the old, in with the new';

"We had a really clunky old chiller from the late 80s, it was a hand-me down from City Centre in Dunedin, we've replaced it with a flash new stand-up chiller and some of the butchery staff have taken the old one home with plans to make it into a barbecue, so it hasn't gone out to pasture just yet!"

The retired all-rounder played both semi-professional and professional cricket from 1990 until 2005, including 14 test matches and 14 one-day internationals for New Zealand.

The move is a welcome return to the area for the couple, as Matthew was raised in Te Puke, and Sheree grew up in Hamilton, it's also a shift they hope will benefit their young family.

"We have two little ones (Tayla 6, Josh 2) and raising them in the countryside versus the city made sense, and from the minute we arrived everyone has been very welcoming and friendly."

Hart, who previously owned New World Papakura, spent six months working in the Matamata store in 2010 as he completed the New World Trainee Operator programme and says nearly three years later many of the staff remain.

"'There's a lot of familiar faces here which is great, Ewan (Atherton) the previous owner has done a great job, I've got big boots to fill but we'll do our best to follow in his footsteps and add value where we can".

As for the possibility of a New World Matamata Cricket team in the next inter-provincial tournament?  "Not just yet" says Hart, but he has confirmed that a coaching role for the Matamata College First XI may be on the cards.

"Unlike most wine shows, the New World Wine Awards guaranteed us purchase orders for our gold medal winning Trout Valley Pinot Noir in 2012. The sophisticated marketing of the awards meant huge exposure for our brand, which is a critical determinant of success in what is a very crowded domestic wine market," said Day.

Catherine Keith from Mount Brown also endorses the awards.

"Winning a Gold medal for our Riesling last year resulted in significant and ongoing sales not only for that wine, but also our entire wine portfolio. We've won many medals over the years, but the New World Wine Awards is by far the most effective in terms of generating sales," said Keith.

Last year over 300,000 bottles of the Top 50 wines, with a retail value in excess of $4.3m, were sold throughout New World supermarkets in the first six weeks of the award results being announced. That volume of sales in the first six weeks was 17% higher than in the corresponding period in the previous year, reflecting the increasing awareness among consumers of the credibility of these wine awards.

The New World Wine Awards use the same internationally-recognised points system as other leading wine competitions, ensuring that winning wines are the best examples of their type. The only difference is that all wines entered must retail for below $25 a bottle and there must be at least 500 cases of each wine available for sale. This means the awards are the premier consumer-focused awards in New Zealand because affordability and availability of the wines are key criteria for entry.

This year the New World Wine Awards is introducing a reduced alcohol class, opening up the competition to wineries that are at the forefront of responding to consumer demand for high quality reduced or low alcohol wines.

Jim Harré, Chair of the judging panel says that the wine industry and awards in this sector are highly competitive.

"The New World Wine Awards is particularly good for winemakers because not only are their wines judged by the same standards as any other wine competition, they are guaranteed distribution and marketing," says Harré.

An independent panel of 13 expert wine judges will blind-taste each wine entered in the awards over two days in Wellington. This year the panel will include Dr Tony Jordan, an internationally experienced winemaker involved with Domaine Chandon, Cloudy Bay and Cape Mentelle. He is also a board member of Wine Australia.

The judges will award Gold, Silver and Bronze medals, and convene to select the Champion red, white and bubbles overall. The Top 50 wines will be showcased in 137 New World stores nationwide, online and in the New World Wine Awards booklet.

Entries to the awards close on Friday 7 June. All details are at www.wineshow.co.nz.

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2013 New World Wine Awards Judges

• Jim Harré - Wine Consultant (Chair)
• Dr Tony Jordan - Wine Australia (International Judge)
• Kate Radburnd - CJ Pask
• Olly Masters - Misha's Vineyard, Ata Rangi & Seresin Estate
• Jane Boyle - Villa Maria
• Simon Waghorn - Astrolabe
• Ben Glover - Mudhouse
• Jeff Clarke - ARA wines
• Dr Alastair Leggat
• Terry Copeland - Treasury Wine Estates
• Sarah-Kate Dineen - Maude Wines
• Simon Nunns - Coopers Creek
• Michael Ivicevich - Delegats

The modern new look to the store includes additional glazing and more natural light, meaning customers shopping experience will be lighter, brighter and more pleasurable

Steve Purton, owner-operator of New World Birkenhead, is thrilled with the stage one opening.  "Customers will immediately see the difference in-store and this will give shoppers a feeling for what the completed New World will look like.  This section of our modern new store has wide aisles, lots of exciting fresh food and grocery products, and all the great personal service our customers have come to enjoy."

Purton explains that refurbishment will still continue in other areas of the store and the butchery, new coffee bar and Lotto kiosk will be completed shortly.

"The team are working tirelessly to transform the store and we thank customers for their understanding during this time. We encourage locals to come down and see the wonderful changes for themselves," says Purton.

The refurbishment will be completed by August with new areas of the store being completed in stages over the coming months.

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Greg Boock, who comes from a long line of grocers says, "Grandad opened Gardens New World in Dunedin and Mum and Dad (Maria and Bruce Boock) moved to Christchurch to take over Bishopdale New World before moving to Blenheim New World. I've worked in supermarkets since I was at school slowly moving through the ranks from trolley boy to, most recently, store manager at Northlands PAK'nSAVE. So you could say being a grocer is in my blood."

Boock firmly believes that growing up immersed in the family's business means he knows what is required to keep customers coming back. "Woolston New World is a great opportunity for us to really get stuck in and deliver fantastic customer service and the unique New World experience to the local community," says Boock. The couple are planning a very hands on approach and believe good staff with great skills are key to ensuring success.

Woolston New World is situated on the outskirts of Christchurch, and while it will initially be a smaller sized New World, plans are underway to build a new store adjacent to the existing supermarket.  Boock confirms that the 28 staff currently employed at the store will remain and it is very much business as usual.  There may be potential for more roles to be created in the future but this will be determined once plans are complete.

The Boock's have a young family with three children, Lily (8), Macy (4) and Hunter (18 months) keeping them busy at home, while Rebecca's eldest child Oliver (15) is currently studying at school in Melbourne. The pair admits that their children and sport are a key focus, with Rebecca volunteering at their local toy library and Greg involved in the committee at his cricket club.

"Playing an active part of the Woolston community is something we really look forward to. We want to provide all the services New World is renowned for as well supporting local groups such as schools, sports clubs and charities where we can," continues Boock.

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"We are delighted to bring New World to Kumeu," says Angela Bull.  "We have great support from the Kumeu community for a New World and we are excited to be getting underway with the new store. The New World supermarket will be approximately 2800sqm in size, with a modern bright look, easy access and plenty of car parking.  Construction of the new store will commence shortly and we will confirm an opening date for the New World closer to the time."

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Steve Anderson, Managing Director, Foodstuffs New Zealand said that after such a long wait it was great to see the reaction from customers when the doors to the supermarkets opened this morning.

"Having such an iconic Kiwi brand welcomed back in store by one of New Zealand's greatest ever All Blacks and sporting legend, Buck Shelford was special. The enthusiasm I saw first hand has been replicated around New Zealand," he said.

Being a staunch Marmite lover and proud Cantabrian, Anderson says that it's great to see that Sanitarium have been able to rebuild their Christchurch factory and resume production of the 'black gold'.

"There has been a bit of a rush, but customers have been very understanding and only taken what they need for now meaning the supplies we have will go so much further," he said.

Anderson recognised the hard work Sanitarium has put into getting Marmite back out to customers. "We know it was no easy task, especially as the business was faced with significant issues post-earthquake. But Sanitarium's commitment to resuming production as soon as possible has been a real credit to both the company and individuals involved at the factory."

Sanitarium's General Manager, Pierre van Heerden, said the buzz in the store when customers tasted marmite again wasvery satisfying for everyone who had worked so hard to get supplies back on the shelves.

"You could just see by the way they savoured the taste when they were eating their toast just how much they have missed it," says van Heerden.

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The 6000sqm supermarket on Middle Renwick Rd, part of the Westwood development, has taken a year to complete and ushers in a new era of shopping for the town, with its large car park, on site fuel pumps, self-scan checkouts, free wifi, coffee-to-go outlet and most importantly, low prices.

Mark Elkington, owner of the new supermarket, said that the carpark had been full for the entire morning

"We had between 500 and 600 transactions in the first few hours of trading.

"This is a very exciting time for Blenheim - the PAK'nSAVE philosophy is all about delivering groceries at the lowest possible price, and we will certainly be offering the lowest food prices in Blenheim.  Our customers are going to find a significant difference and we know they are going to be pleasantly surprised at how much they will save on their weekly groceries."

Mark says there will be some very attractive specials in the opening week.

"People will see some prices they haven't seen in Blenheim before and as an opening treat we will be giving away 15,000 reuseable bags for people to pack their groceries in."

The supermarket will feature a huge 'aisle of value' including a range of grocery products, liquor and dairy products.

"We're going to be the first PAK'nSAVE in the South Island to offer dairy products in our 'aisle of value'.  Dairy is a big part of PAK'nSAVE  - cheese, milk and so on - and we'll be including those staples in the aisle at a really cheap price."

Three entire bays in the store are devoted to gluten free products and in addition there will be some gluten free frozen items including a section in the bakery freezer.

"We're very aware that this is a dietary necessity for many people today and our selection of foods that are gluten free will be significant."

With about 10,000 different product lines in store, the supermarket will cover all customer expectations including the provision of 330 car parks, and on site fuel pumps at which to redeem discount fuel vouchers.

"Our customers will be able to take their voucher when they leave the store, and fill up at the pumps straight away.  We're going to have staff helping with this in the first few weeks, but the pumps are self serve and people will easilylearn the procedure."

The supermarket itself will have nine self-scan checkoutsand 16 standard checkouts.

"People can choose whichever they prefer.  We will have a mixture of express self scan and full shop self scan checkouts."

While shopping, customers will have free wifi use for checking their emails, and will be able to buy a fresh coffee-to-go from just inside the door.

Mark, together with wife and co-owner Andrea Boock, are a well known Blenheim couple, whose four children, aged 3-8 were all born in the town.  Mark was chairman of the Harlequins Rugby Club for more than five years.

Andrea is a third generation grocer.  The supermarket business is in her family's blood - she grew up helping to pack groceries.  Grandfather Bill Boock owned a Four Square in Dunedin in the early 1970s before opening Gardens New World in 1980 with Andrea's father Bruce, and his brothers.  More recently Andrea's sister and brother have also purchased their own markets.

On their return from overseas in 2001 Mark and Andrea helped Andrea's parents and siblings with the management of the New World supermarket in Blenheim, before buying it off mother Maria Boock, three years ago.

"When the opportunity came to open a brand new PAK'nSAVE we decided to go for it," says Mark.

PAK'nSAVE Blenheim will have 150 staff and be open daily from 7am-10pm.

PAK'nSAVE Blenheim features:

-         LOW food prices

-         330 car parks

-         on site Mobil fuel pumps

-          9 self scan checkouts

-         16 standard checkouts

-         free in store wifi

-         substantial gluten free section

-         coffee to go

Ms Klouwens began her public relations career working under the late Cathy Campbell on a variety of boutique brands including New Zealand Fashion Week. 

At Foodstuffs NZ, she will join the National Group Marketing team, helping to implement and drive a variety of strategic and national marketing initiatives across the New World, PAK'nSAVE and Four Square brands.

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