Foodstuffs North Island and Linkt Community Trust are partnering to bring a social supermarket to the Tauranga suburb of Otumoetai. The store is set to open next month.
"We believe that strengthening and connecting the existing community support networks through the addition of a social supermarket will make for a place where our community has access to affordable, safe, nutritious kai. We believe everyone has something to bring to the table so that we all have the ability to get through times of hardship together,” said Jackie Pain of the Linkt Trust.
When it’s fully operational, the social supermarket will provide wrap-around support for shoppers – with specially trained staff who can refer shoppers on to social workers, financial mentors, and other forms of support. In the hope that one day shoppers won’t need to rely on the social supermarket anymore.
“We want to say a special thanks to the Foodstuffs community of stores and our buddy stores, New World Brookfield and PAK’nSAVE Cameron Road, for backing this,” said John Paine of the Linkt Trust
“The intention is to have a range of products on the shelves in our social supermarket that enables them to come in, have the dignity of choosing the products they need themselves, so they can make the kind of meals they want to cook, shopping in an environment that looks and feels like a normal supermarket,” said Willa Hand, Foodstuffs North Island Head of Membership Experience.
The social supermarket is set to open on Tuesday, November first.
