To prioritise the safety of customers and staff, Countdown has decided to remove cigarettes from stores outside of normal trading hours.
“The safety and wellbeing of our team and communities is our absolute priority, which is why Countdown has today made the decision to remove cigarettes from its stores outside of normal trading hours,” says Countdown’s Director of Stores, Jason Stockill.
“We are continuing to see increasing levels of retail crime across New Zealand, and our stores are no exception. We hope this move will go some way towards deterring theft and helping keep our team and customers safe in our stores.
“We are always reviewing our health and safety controls to ensure we’re doing everything we can to keep everyone safe, and we also continue to work with Police and other retailers to develop shared solutions to the challenges we’re all facing.
“In the last few months, we have added a number of other new measures in our stores including enhanced team training, push to talk radios and enhanced CCTV surveillance. We are also actively working to add further initiatives in the coming months and investing significantly in preventive measures.”
