The stores in question were spread out across the entire Christchurch district, as far west as Wigram and south as Lyttelton - with approximately an hour and a half of driving time.
Among the stores targeted was a MetroMart on a busy highway and two local dairies, in Woolston and Russley.
"It’s not fun anymore," one dairy owner told the Herald as she contemplates shutting her store, while another said his business friends feel their shop will inevitably be targeted.
"This has been news for a year now, all my business friends know this is going to happen to us," he said.
It began at 2.45am when a shop on Centaurus Rd in Huntsbury was broken into.
Fifteen minutes later, the MetroMart on Sparks Rd in Halswell was targeted, a large hole smashed into the glass shop front and shards scattered inside the store’s entrace.
Despite the apparent damage, the store - which has been burgled a number of times in recent history - has remained open to the public this morning.
The manager declined to comment but did mention the offenders unsuccessfully tried to access the tobacco cabinet at the back of the store.
Another 15 minutes after the MetroMart was broken into, another shop on Wigram Rd was hit.
Another 45 minutes passed and police identified a fourth shop that was hit on Hopkins St in Woolston - a local dairy owned for more than twenty years by Preeti and Hermant Patel.
The couple have had their fair share of incidents over the decades, about five years ago they were ram raided and on another occasion held up by a group of machete-wielding hooligans.
This morning, the offenders smashed in their dairy’s door and took a few store goods - candyfloss, ice creams, chocolates and a couple of vapes.
"It’s not fun anymore with this problem of theft, violence and burglary," she said.
"It makes us really ask questions about whether it’s really worth it anymore, at the beginning it was fine, I would be here alone until close but now it’s a different environment."
Half an hour after the Patels’ dairy was targeted, offenders ramraided another business on London St in Lyttelton.
Then, another ram raid was then spotted at 5.15am on Bassett St in Burwood.
The most recent incident occurred on Cutts Rd in Russely, the scene of the Cutts Mini Mart which was also ram raided shortly after 6am.
Store owner Kinjan Shah heard a large "bang" at the time of the incident and quickly discovered his shop had been targeted.
"I’m always reading the news and I know the ram raids happen so I know it’s going to happen, they target each and every store," he said.
Shah ran to check his shop and found a car planted into the building’s entrance.
Footage from the incident showed the car attempting to breach the shop entrance but being unable to.
"The emotion of my business friends - we feel this problem but we know it’s going to happen," he told the Herald.
"We have to face the problem now, that’s normal these days. When is it going to stop?"
In a statement, Christchurch Superintendent Lane Todd said inquiries were under way to determine whether the incidents were linked and to locate the offenders at large.
Nobody has been arrested in connection to the burglaries at this stage.
"Anyone who has information that could assist with inquiries is urged to contact Police."
