Mitre 10 opens Pāpāmoa MEGA store with trade entrance

Mitre 10 will open a new MEGA store in Pāpāmoa, its first in New Zealand with a dedicated walk-up trade entrance.

The store will replace an existing small-format outlet, moving operations to The Sands retail development in Pāpāmoa East. Covering nearly 11,000 square metres, it will include a trade drive-thru, automated Click & Collect area, timber yard, retail floor space and garden centre.

The project reflects strong growth in the Tauranga suburb, where rising housing demand has increased pressure on retail and trade services. The previous site was too small to support a full Trade Centre, meaning this will be the first time Pāpāmoa has had one.

Under the new layout, trade customers will be able to park near a separate entrance and walk through a dedicated Click & Collect lobby to the trade checkout. They will not need to cross a driveway or pass through the main retail store to complete a purchase.

Loretta Johnstone, Co-owner of Mitre 10 MEGA Pāpāmoa, said the changes were designed to make visits quicker for trade customers.

"It's like having the separate garden centre entrance - many people don't want to have to walk through the whole store just to buy an extra bag of potting mix. Now our customers can come straight to the Trade checkout, ask for a product, and get back on the road again quickly," Johnstone said.

The automated Click & Collect space will serve as a trial for the wider Mitre 10 network. Customers will be able to collect orders from a locker using a PIN, in a process the retailer compared with supermarket collection systems.

Trade focus

The new department will also include a Trade Manager and two Trade Account Managers, who have already been meeting local businesses ahead of the opening.

Johnstone said demand from the local trade sector had been clear as the project took shape.

"Nearly a quarter of the Tauranga population is located in Pāpāmoa, so lots of tradies live here, but they're not well served. This will change their lives. This isn't just coming from the businesses we've spoken to - we've hired local contractors to work on the build, including the lighting and wiring, and they're absolutely fizzing," she said.

The focus on trade access marks a shift in format for the chain's MEGA stores. Alongside the walk-up entrance, the site will have dedicated trade parking and a 2,030 square metre trade drive-thru area intended to speed up collections for builders and contractors.

Store footprint

Beyond the trade operation, the site will include a 2,200 square metre timber yard, a 5,300 square metre retail floor and a 2,075 square metre garden centre. It will also feature a Columbus Café and a treehouse-themed playground, broadening its appeal to household shoppers as well as professional customers.

The project will create 30 new jobs, taking total staff numbers to about 90. The site will also have 806 car parks, reflecting the scale of the development and expectations of high customer traffic.

The store is opening as more housing is planned nearby, with land opposite The Sands complex bought for a new residential development. That is expected to lift demand for building supplies and support services in the area, particularly among smaller trade operators based in or around Pāpāmoa.

The investment also highlights how large-format retailers are adapting store layouts to meet the different needs of consumer and trade customers. In this case, the main operational change is not just the addition of a Trade Centre, but a separate route through the site that reduces time spent moving through a standard retail environment.

For the local market, that may prove as significant as the larger footprint. Pāpāmoa now accounts for a sizeable share of Tauranga's population, yet until now trade customers in the suburb have lacked a dedicated Mitre 10 trade offer close to home.

With its 11,000 square metre footprint and first-of-its-kind trade set-up, the store will be one of the more closely watched format changes in the chain's network. The automated collection area is also set to be tested as a model for other locations.