Countdown Bethlehem has reopened as Woolworths Bethlehem, marking the first Countdown supermarket to rebrand under the Woolworths name. 

To prepare for the relaunch, the store underwent a $5 million upgrade over five months, with highlights including a dedicated drive up area for online customers to pick up orders, electronic shelf labels, and a fresh and modern look.

The venue offers a new shopping experience with upgraded fresh produce, deli, bakery and seafood areas, additional self-checkouts, and new aisles with more than 1700 new products on shelves.

Dwaine Geddes, who was part of the original team that opened the store 20 years ago, will lead the operation as Woolworths Bethlehem store manager.

It feels like a full-circle moment, Geddes remarked, adding there will be weekend activities to celebrate the reopening.

Woolworths New Zealand MD Spencer Sonn said the refreshed store is an exciting milestone in Woolworths’ journey to become the best supermarket experience for New Zealand.

“Today is an example of the kind of results our customers will see from the $400 million we are investing in renewing and refreshing our stores to make them better and safer for local customers and for our team.”