The owner of Halfway Bush Convenience Store, who does not want to be named, was confronted by a masked man with a rifle, who demanded money and tobacco, about 10.40am.
The man pointed the rifle at him and walked behind the counter to take money from the cash register. He then began taking tobacco from the cabinet behind the counter, at which time the shop phone started ringing.
The phone was near a door behind the counter, which leads to a living area.
The store owner knew his mother, who was out back, would come out to answer the phone so he yelled at her to ''stay inside''.
The man then fled with an unknown amount of money and tobacco.
Detective Sergeant Nik Leigh said no shots were fired and no-one was injured in the incident.
The offender was believed to have left the scene in a silver hatchback.
He was of ''a medium build'' and wore a grey ''hoodie'' with a circular emblem on the chest.
The shop has been robbed twice since the family bought it about eight years ago.
The first robbery, in 2012, was also by a man armed with a firearm.
When the armed man walked in yesterday, the shop owner was determined not to ''panic''.
He claimed robbery was part of owning a convenience store.
''It always happens - it's quite common for dairies. You know it is going to happen but you have to be careful.''
Being careful included following the offender's instructions and making it clear ''they can help themselves'' to cash and tobacco.
The shop reopened about 2pm yesterday and continued to sell tobacco.
If the shop did not stock tobacco, the business would not be viable.
''You have to. I have no choice ... It's a dilemma ... If you don't sell cigarettes, you would have to close your shop.''
The profit margins on other groceries were too small to earn a living from, he said.
The robbery had left him feeling ''angry'' because owning a convenience store was a hard enough way to make a living without having to deal with such incidents.
He was insured but he was concerned a claim would increase the cost of his premiums.
The rising cost of tobacco resulted in criminals taking bigger risks to steal it, increasing the threats for shop owners, he said. ''It's getting dangerous now.''
On Monday, about $40,000 of cigarettes were taken from Palmerston Four Square and thousands of dollars' worth of tobacco stolen from Maheno.
These incidents came less than a week after hundreds of shopkeepers marched in Manukau, calling for more police on the streets and a review of the law to protect them from often violent break-ins.
At least 128 tobacco-related hits on petrol stations, liquor stores and dairies have been reported nationwide since the beginning of 2016, but there are likely to have been many more as not all were reported or known to media.
When asked under the Official Information Act for the number of tobacco-related crimes, police said they could not provide figures because of the way incidents were recorded.
Cigarette prices have increased sharply in recent years, with tax rising 10% on January 1 every year in an attempt to reduce the smoking rate.
The Crown received $1.7billion in tobacco taxes last year - more than 2% of all tax revenue.
One North Island liquor shop owner says he will try to kill the next person who attempts to rob him.
Another retailer claimed unscrupulous stores were buying stolen cigarettes cheaply and onselling them, fuelling the crimes.
Vinnie Gillgren, whose Te Puke Four Square was robbed last year at knifepoint, said tobacco was attractive for people seeking a quick buck - and those who bought it were feeding the industry.
''What these guys are doing is taking tobacco from shops and then onselling it, generally to unscrupulous small business owners who don't care about where the products have come from,'' Mr Gillgren said.
''That's what needs to be brought to attention. There needs to be more focus somehow on stopping business owners [buying from] the black market,'' Mr Gillgren said.
A Rotorua liquor store owner, who did not want his identity or stores to be made public, was so angry he said he would try to kill the next person who stole from him.
''If someone comes to rob me, I will try to do anything to kill them,'' the man said.
His handful of stores had been robbed of cash, cigarettes and alcohol many times in the past 10 years, he said, ranging from overnight ram-raids to youths grabbing bottles and running.
''I don't trust the law. Any criminal that's caught will do it again. So I'm going to teach them on the spot,'' he said.
Sunny Kaushal, founder of Crime Prevention Group, organised a public march of almost 700 people in Manukau on Sunday to draw attention to rising crime against shopkeepers.
''This issue is so serious, and the Government has not been listening,'' Mr Kaushal said.
''We need action now ... We need more police and we need to see the enforcement. We're asking to review the law.''
New Zealand Association of Convenience Stores executive director Dave Hooker was not aware of any organised black market operators selling tobacco to stores, but said there was a significant financial incentive because of tobacco's normally low profit margin.
''It'd be a pretty lucrative opportunity for someone already selling tobacco ... it could be happening.''
He said security had become an increasing worry for tobacco stockists.
''It's been a concern, not just recently, but for a number of years, as the excise on tobacco goes up every year,'' he said.
''There is a point where you say, 'When is enough, enough?' on the excise [tax] side of it.
''It's becoming like stocking gold.''
Dunedin police wanted to hear from anyone with information on the robbery or anyone offered discounted tobacco.
Det Sgt Leigh (03) 471-4800, Crimestoppers 0800 555-111.
-Additional reporting by NZME
