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Customer story

New World Whitianga, New Zealand

New Zealand Supermarket, New World, recently put into service a uniquely customised Sealegs 9.0m Hydrasol RIB to deliver groceries, by boat, to selected beachfront communities and anchored boats in the Coromandel Peninsula.

The New World amphibious Sealegs was ordered to ensure hassle-free summer shopping for thousands of customers. The Coromandel welcomes more than 500,000 visitors each summer, putting strain and causing issues for supermarket operators and customers alike, so New World Whitianga owner-operator Kerry Stanley came up with an idea to utilize the amphibious capabilities of a Sealegs boat to combat these issues.

The Waka Kai is not your standard Sealegs amphibious boat, and Kerry worked with Sealegs and his skipper to customise the boat to suit his application and the demands of commercial operations.

The initiative was planned to originally run until February 2020, but due to significant demand, has continued throughout March 2020 and beyond. It was in significant demand during the COVID-19 lockdown period where delivery of groceries to homeowners in isolation was an essential service.