Woolworths has been the one and only supermarket at the heart of Tawa for as long as I can remember. When I first arrived in Tawa in October 1996 there were a few more shops in the mall. From memory there was the milkbar, the stationery store (now relocated to the other side of the Main Road), a sports shop, a greengrocer and the bank. Now just the bank remains, other than the supermarket which closed its doors for the last time on Monday evening, 7th November.

Not that Tawa has lost its supermarket. The current complex is being taken over by Foodstuffs at the end of November and will be totally revamped. A brand new New World supermarket, one third larger than the old Woolworths, will rise from the ashes (metaphorically speaking) and open for business sometime in mid-2012. In the meantime Tawa is being serviced by the "Tawa Temporary Supermarket", a mini-version being run by the same people who will operate the new supermarket once it's up and running.

The above photo was taken on my last visit to Woolworths - at 11.44am on Sunday 6th November 2011.

- Malcolm Sparrow