"It's really cool and nice to hear," Ms Sands said when given the news.
"I think it's because we're a happy, friendly shop and what you put out you get back in luckiness."
Bay of Plenty's luckiest Lotto stores
1. Greerton Lotto - Tauranga - 24 div 1 winners - $18.3m total won
2. Bayfair Lotto - Tauranga - 21 div 1 winners - $8.6m won
3. Halfway Store 1996 - Whakatane - 20 div 1 winners - $8.7m won
4. Tauranga City Lotto - Tauranga - 18 div 1 winners - $5.5m won
5. Mags, Cards & Lotto - Tauranga - 17 div 1 winners - $12.7m won
Greerton Lotto's lucky reputation has spread far. Ms Sands said she had a young guy from Auckland come in yesterday morning and buy three weeks worth of tickets.
"He said he had bought here a couple of times and had some luck. Then he asked how he could buy from me on a regular basis from Auckland. So I gave him my bank details and said I would post them if he called when he needed a ticket."
The biggest winning ticket she's sold in her 15 years owning the store won an Auckland visitor $5m, while the biggest local winner went home with $4.5m.
Sometimes people come in to check a ticket with no idea they've won. Just recently she broke the news to a customer he had won more than $20,000.
"It was a busy Saturday when he checked his ticket and he was just dancing round the shop.
"It must be a great feeling. I'd like to feel it one day," she said with a laugh.
In all her years owning the shop Ms Sands has played Lotto regularly but only had a couple of division three strike wins, each around $800. She's never won division one or two.
But until that happens, she's happy that she and her dogs Pippi and Johnny can be part of the fabric of Greerton Village.
Lucky punters
The Bay of Plenty Times spoke to Lotto shoppers at Greerton Lotto.
Diane Morgan
"I shop here mainly because I've always shopped here. It must be, what, 15 years? It's because they're really nice. I've won a bit. Nothing huge, but some $20, $25 wins."
Pam Valois
"I like it, I find it fairly lucky. I don't usually buy Lotto - well not very often - it's usually scratchies. I've had a few little wins."
Hardeep Singh
"I shop here maybe once or twice a month. I heard from someone else that there is a line out the door sometimes for this place."
30 years of Lotto
- 198 first division winners in Tauranga ($120.9m won)
- 419 first division winners in the Bay of Plenty ($274.2m won)
- The Bay is New Zealand's fifth luckiest region
- $27m is the Bay's biggest win, sold at AJ's Lotto in Tauranga in 2012
- 1 August 1987 - Lotto first drawn
- $10b won, 450m winners
- $44m - biggest prize won, 2016
- $4.3b returned to communities in Lottery grants