The shopping and chatting paused briefly as the Takapau fire siren went up, everyone looked out the window and the countdown began to see how fast the volunteer fire brigade could get off the blocks.
"The first one's there - that's 12 seconds" went the commentary. "There's two, three...four and they're off. Under a minute - how's that for a response?"
Their pride in their brigade was obvious, as was their concern for whatever had sparked the callout...consensus was a road crash or a housefire until a customer arrived with the news it was a fire alarm at the freezing works.
Back to the shopping and chatting.
The beginnings of the Takapau Op Shop are muddied by passing time, but John Blackett has been volunteering for 12 years and thinks his predecessor was at the helm for "maybe 18 years".
The premises was originally the Plunket Rooms, then the op shop took over one half while the library was in the other.
Op shop volunteer Denise Cox says "The clothes were in one half and the library was in the other, but as electronic devices became more popular the visitors to the library dwindled. We were overflowing the storage for the op shop and one day I looked at the library shelves and thought...our household goods and knick-knacks would fit quite nicely on those.
"Of course we still have books which we sell for $1 or $2."
The origins of the shop go back towards the beginning of the Takapau Health Centre, when the centre used to stockpile donated goods and have a garage sale twice a year to raise money.
Eventually the deluge of donations became such that storage overflowed and the op shop idea was floated. The Plunket Rooms was available, rent free and the shop has since become a community hub.
It's a "good old-fashioned" op shop, says recent volunteer Di Reeves, Takapau born and bred but only recently moved back and taken up residence in the town.
"Normally it's 'fill a bag for $3' and there can't be many places in New Zealand that you can do that any more. Then, when the shop gets too full we have $1-a-bag specials. We have fruit and veges to give away when people donate their excess produce.
"It's a friendly space, it showcases what's good about the Takapau community. We're on a first name basis with people, all the staff are volunteers, we have our names and phone number on the door in case someone's in urgent need of something or they have donations they want to drop off after hours.
"There's a box of wooly hats on the front porch - free for children who might be chilly."
People from Levin and Napier show up at the Takapau Op Shop because it's so affordable and there are treasures to be found, says Di.
"They can't believe what we have here. What gets donated blows me away too."
There is another Pink Ribbon Day at the Takapau Op Shop on Sunday, so get along for morning tea and take your cup and plate home. And remember it's 'fill a bag for $1' and the raffles are three draws for $1.
The Details
What: Takapau Op Shop
Where: 51 Charlotte St Takapau
When: Wednesday and Sunday, 10am - noon
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