Countdown Christchurch Airport ready for arrivals

Countdown Christchurch Airport ready for arrivals

13 August 2015: Countdown has opened its Christchurch Airport store today with an official opening ceremony held by Deputy Mayor Vicki Buck, members of Christchurch International Airport Board and members of the community.

The new 2,432 square metre store features a full production bakery, in-store butchery, self check-outs, and combined seafood and deli.

The new store will create 75 new jobs in the community. At least 22 employees have been transitioned to Countdown Christchurch Airport from other stores to supplement a total team of 97 employees. This increases the number of Cantabrian’s employed by Countdown to 2,134 across the 18 stores in the region.

Store Manager Penny Hardaker says it’s been a busy lead up to the opening but unveiling the bigger and better shopping experience to the Christchurch community has been great. Mrs Hardaker, who has been with the company in various roles for 14 years is proud to be growing her team with members of the local community.

The opening was also attended by Salvation Army Major Kingsley Sampson and representatives from the Salvation Army, who were presented with a trolley of groceries for the local food bank. The new store will join Countdown’s Food Rescue programme, which donated $3.4 million worth of food to food banks around New Zealand in the last year.

Deputy Mayor Vicki Buck says Countdown’s new state-of-the-art supermarket is a great new facility for Christchurch’s North West.

“Countdown has been a part of the Christchurch community since 1981 and it’s great to see them continue to invest in our city, providing more employment and new amenities,” says Buck.

Countdown’s Acting Managing Director Pat McEntee says the company is delighted to offer a new shopping experience in Christchurch.

“We are thrilled to be opening a modern, new store in Christchurch. We thank our customers for their patience while we built the new store and we’re looking forward to welcoming everyone in,” says McEntee.

Christchurch Airport Chief Commercial Officer of Property Blair Forgie says the Countdown supermarket will be well received by both visitors to the airport and workers across the campus.

“We have 6,000 people working on the airport campus each day, many of whom are looking forward to a new supermarket on their doorstep. The Countdown supermarket is a great anchor for the Spitfire Square development, with other stores within the precinct due to open over the next few months”.

The new store has been designed with Countdown’s latest design features and includes wider aisles, a more expansive fresh produce department and energy efficient fittings and equipment.

ENDS

© Scoop Media