A collaboration between Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori (The Māori Language Commission) and Countdown sees customers able to use self-checkouts in te reo Māori.
It's a world-first for Countdown customers to be able to have te reo Māori as a language option at self-service checkouts, with an audio greeting and farewell already established. More audio in te reo Māori will be added to the system in the next few months.
With over 3 million customers through their stories every week, Countdown Director of Corporate Affairs, Safety and Sustainability, Kiri Hannifin says it's an opportunity to introduce te reo Māori into everyday things for whānau, which includes shopping for kai.
“Our entire team is incredibly proud that not only can te reo Māori speakers now complete their shopping in their own language, but that we can use our scale and reach to help ensure te reo Māori is revitalised and used for generations to come."
Bilingual signage will be in stores, customer communications will have reo Māori greetings, and all fish products will have te reo Māori names on their packages as well.
Hannifin says Countdown is grateful to Te Taura Whiri for their tautoko in bringing the project to life.
