Save our supermarket - locals want to know why Countdown Nawton is closing down

Monday, 10 April 2023

A community meeting about Countdown Nawton, organised by Hamilton West MP Tama Potaka, attracted about 40 people, including Hamilton City councillor Sarah Thomson, left, and concerned locals Robin McIntyre, Jahvaya Wheki and Paula Salisbury.

Whether it be escalating crime, an earthquake-prone, unfit-for-purpose building, or simple economics, Nawton residents want to know why their beloved Countdown supermarket is closing.

Unfortunately for them, a community meeting held by Hamilton West MP Tama Potaka on Monday did not provide the answers they were looking for.

Countdown Nawton is the suburb’s only supermarket and is slated for closure sometime in August.

Potaka said it would “leave a massive hole in the community”. The next closest supermarket is about 3.5km away in Dinsdale.

The store has been part of the Countdown network for more than 35 years, a previous statement said.

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On Tuesday last week, Countdown confirmed the closure, saying the building was “unable to meet the requirements of a modern retail supermarket”.

Hamilton mayor Paula Southgate, centre, and former Hamilton West MP Tim Macindoe, right, attended the meeting.

Other business owners in the shopping precinct had suggested it was because the building had been deemed earthquake-prone and retail crime was ramping up.

After disappointment and surprise in the Nawton community, Potaka contacted Countdown’s owners, and the building’s owner, and organised Monday’s community meeting at the Western Community Centre.

About 40 locals showed up – as did Hamilton mayor Paula Southgate, city councillor Sarah Thomson and Māori ward councillor Moko Tamariki, Waikato Police field crime manager Andy Saunders and former Hamilton West MP Tim Macindoe.

Concerned locals got together to discuss the closure of Countdown Nawton on Monday.

“The supermarket was our lifeline during the pandemic,” one local said. “We deserve to know why they are closing it down.”

Potaka was keen to convey that rampant crime wasn’t the main reason for the supermarket closure, but said it could be one of the reasons.

He said some of the top brass at Woolworths New Zealand, the owners of Countdown supermarkets in New Zealand, told him the building’s lease would soon end, and it was not a good fit for a modern supermarket which relied heavily on technology the current building did not offer.

Waikato Police field crime manager Andy Saunders attended Monday’s meeting at the Western Community Centre.

Potaka said he was told staff would be able to keep their jobs but would be “re-deployed” to other sites.

“They told me an assessment was done and Countdown Nawton did not pass.

“No one at Countdown told me it was due to seismic issues.”

But, Potaka said the people of Nawton deserved the truth.

Many elderly or disabled people would find it hard to access groceries, he said, there would be a loss in social engagement and more vehicles on already congested roads.

Suggestions of setting up a new community police station to help curb crime, or ways to attract a new supermarket business to the site were also discussed.

“But we still do want a face-to-face meeting and an explanation from Countdown,” Potaka said.

Mayor Paula Southgate said the council was limited in what it could do in terms of crime, and the closure was a commercial decision it had little influence over.

Countdown’s director of property Matt Grainger has previously said that Countdown Nawton was one of its smaller stores and had been part of its network for over 35 years.

“This is not a decision we take lightly.

“We’ve looked at how we could keep the store open but unfortunately there are a number of issues that mean it's unable to meet the requirements of a modern retail supermarket,” Grainger said.

Countdown was contacted to confirm Potaka’s statements, but were yet to respond.