Press release



Rural Retail Moving with the Times

New Zealand’s first mobile rural retail store will hit South Island roads on November 8 to meet demand from local dairy farmers for a convenient and quality retail service. In addition to the door-to-door delivery of pre-ordered goods, the walk-in RD1 Mobile Store will carry core dairy farming products and a range of seasonal items for customer selection.

Calls from dairy farmers wanting easier access to farming inputs and to shop with RD1 were the key drivers behind the new concept. “South Island dairy farms are generally larger and more spread out than those in the North Island,” confirms RD1 General Manager, Nick Berry, “so it’s hard to justify a store in each smaller service town. The result is that farmers have to travel long distances to pick up supplies which means precious time off farm.

“Our new RD1 Mobile Store ticks all the boxes,” continues Nick. “It makes economic sense to our business and it’s an innovative and practical solution to what our farmers have asked for. With continued growth in the region, we’re expecting it to develop into a crucial service for these large farming operations.”

Mossburn farmer, Mike Heenan, runs 1,700 cows and believes the new RD1 Mobile Store will be enthusiastically welcomed by local farmers. “It’s been a really tough few months on farm in the South Island and we’re still working our way through this, so it’s all-hands-on-deck. Having to send someone out for several hours to collect supplies is frustrating to say the least.”

Charlie Copeland from Tuatapere agrees. “The new store will be a godsend for us. I can ring or email that morning to order products as with any good delivery service, but you always forget essential items,” says Charlie. “The real beauty of this is that it’s an actual store! I will be able to climb in the truck and grab all those extras that I need – without having to step off farm. Plus as a Fonterra farmer RD1 is my store of choice, so it’s win-win.”

The 11.5m long truck features fold-down stairs from the side providing access to a walk-in store, fully equipped with shelving and railings. All core dairy farming products are stocked, along with seasonal selections and any pre-ordered goods. At the rear, larger supplies including pallets and drums are loaded into the back using a hydraulic tail gate, offering easier and safer loading and unloading.

This first RD1 Mobile Store will operate out of the RD1 Winton store and will service farms in Otautau, Tuatapere, Mossburn and Lumsden. The second RD1 Mobile Store is scheduled to be in operation by the end of the year and will service Culverden and Kaikoura out of RD1’s new Rangiora store opening on December 6.

“The potential for RD1 Mobile Stores is huge,” confirms Nick Berry. “If these first two stores perform as we expect, we’re looking to see many green and orange trucks winding their way around the South Island – and eventually the North Island. It’s all about offering our customers the best service possible and this is just another way we aim to do this.”

RD1’s first Mobile Store Manager, Rodney Cook, will operate out of RD1 Winton, with the support of Karen Marsh as the back-up driver. Rodney confirms he’s keen to get behind the wheel. “It’s a really exciting initiative and I’m stoked to be involved. Just like any other RD1 Store Manager, customer service is top of my list. I’ll be regularly visiting the same farmers, so I’ll get to know their requirements and will have the chance to build ongoing relationships.”

Ends

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