The co-owner of a new supermarket in Christchurch says shoppers have turned out in droves in support of the new store since it opened last week.
Ethan Vickery and his father Shane opened Kai Co to give shoppers an alternative to the Woolworths and Foodstuffs supermarket duopoly.
He said during the first three days since the store opened, sales nearly doubled their expectations.
Vickery said he and his father were drawing on their experience and contacts as former butchers, focusing on local markets and suppliers to ensure they were stocking fresh meat and produce at competitive prices.
"I think it's something that is cheaper to be sourced locally.
"There's no benefit being a big corporate and buying in bulk when it's fresh food... and you do have that flexibility as well to get specials. The suppliers just can ring us directly and be like 'we need to clear this stuff' and you can take it," he said.
Vickery said the store was looking to widen its selection of products as suppliers warmed to the new business.
"No one really took us too seriously cause there's nothing really like us that's been done before.
"When we were talking to suppliers originally, they kind of thought we were sort of like a clearance place. But now they've seen what we are and they've come in - they think it's a really nice store - they've all been approaching us," Vickery said.
Under the new fast-track system, qualifying supermarkets could be consented in under a year. (Source: 1News)
He said the store had taken a back-to-basics approach to keep the focus on quality food at an affordable price.
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He said other attempts to break the duopoly had made the mistake of trying to compete against the chains at their own game.
"I think they've all tried to be too upmarket. They haven't been cheap, they haven't been solving a problem. The problem is the cost of living. All those places have been on the higher end. People just need good quality food at a good price.
"We're not trying to be too fancy. We don't have loyalty cards or anything like that it's just simple, good quality food at a good price," Vickery said.
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