Woolworths saw a total sales increase of 4.8 per cent to $2.118 billion in New Zealand during the third quarter of this year.

The company’s e-commerce grew 24.3 per cent to $313 million, with a penetration reaching 14.8 per cent.

Average prices declined by 0.3 per cent during this period, driven by deflation in fruits and vegetables such as potatoes, tomatoes and citrus, which was partly offset by increases in meat and dairy prices. 

Five new FreshChoice stores were opened, and the conversion of 10 SuperValue stores to FirstChoice stores last year led to a 4.2 per cent increase in franchise and other revenues.

Woolworths said that same-day delivery options, such as Delivery Now and Milkrun, drove strong growth with 89 per cent of orders fulfilled within 24 hours. 

Direct-to-boot services were made available in 52 stores, with Milkrun being made available in 77 stores during the quarter. 

The company continued to support the New Zealand community by donating $128,000 in food rescue grants to five local partners.