Mini Woolworths opens at Gosford as youth and adult training centre for people with a disability

A mini Woolworths store has opened in Gosford as a training facility for people with a disability. Meet the first four students keen to kick of their careers in retail.

Ettalong Beach’s Kane Nicholson has a dream to work at Mitre 10 while Erina’s Jessica Ruthen is keen to become a “check out chick”.

Mr Nicholson and Ms Ruthen, along with Woy Woy’s Cathleen Ross and Toowoon Bay’s Ben Hickmott were the first four students to test out Omnia Fresh Food, the new mini Woolworths training initiative which has opened in Gosford.

The mini store, which is a collaboration between Omnia Inclusive Employment Services, Woolworths and Fujitsu Australia, is the first youth and adult workplace training centre giving people with a disability real-world retail experience.

There are four other mini stores operating out of “specific purpose schools” in NSW and the ACT educating students with intellectual disabilities, sensory disabilities and autism, however this is the first store for adults aged 16 and over.

Local students in the mini Woolworths program (l-r) Ben Hickmott, Jessica Ruthen, Cathleen Ross and Kane Nicholson.

The mini store has real food and groceries as well as identical cash registers to Woolworths.

The store has real food, shelves with groceries, signage as well as the identical cash registers found in a Woolworths store. It will be supported and restocked by the local Woolworths at Gosford however is not open to the community. The aim is to provide training in customer service, money handling and organising.

Mr Nicholson, 19, said he was keen to work for Mitre 10 after doing his work experience at the tool shop during school.

“I really loved it and I love doing hard work,” the former Kincumber High School student said.

“I will have cash register training here. This will provide the work experience setting.”

Ms Ruthen said she was excited to learn and hoped to get a job on the cash register at a supermarket. Ms Ross is also keen to pursue a career in retail and said the training so far had been “pretty easy”, while Mr Hickmott said he was excited to help people buy food.

Omnia Inclusive Employment Solutions chief executive officer Deborrah Lambourne described the initiative as “work experience in a safe environment”.

“We might take them from here to a real world Woolworths or another organisation,” she said. “The aim is to make sure we are on a path to long term employment. This is a truly wonderful opportunity for us.”

Ms Lambourne said some employers were nervous and fearful not to offend someone with a disability and Omnia worked to alleviate those fears and make sure everyone can work together confidently.

The store will be restocked and supported by Woolworths at Gosford.

Fujitsu Australia’s head of retail Clare Burden said it’s all about the journey.

“This is all about progression into adulthood and the ability to get meaningful jobs and keep moving forward,” she said.

She said parents of children with a disability were often conflicted about what happens after school.

“This was an obvious extension to the school program,” she said.

Gosford state Labor MP Liesl Tesch said the initiative was a fantastic for ensuring more employment opportunities for people with disabilities as well as those with “hidden disabilities”.

“Having a job is so important,” she said.

Gosford state Labor MP Liesl Tesch has a go at the cash register with mini Woolworths Ambassador Kiara Misciagna.

“It’s part of our identity as Australians. This is just a beautiful initiative. Disability employment is dear to my heart. Only 50 per cent of people with a disability have employment.”
Woolworths chief information security officer Pieter van der Merwe said Woolworths was proud of Omnia Fresh Food and the opportunities it will create for future team members.

“Candidates can experience how to shop, what to buy, how to handle money and how to work with weights and measures in a controlled environment,” he said.

“Even the registers are identical to those in our stores today with the same Fujitsu hardware and software, with full intent to sell to customers that visit Omnia Fresh Food.”

The Mini Woolies program plans to educate more than 170 students and job seekers across Australia by June with plans to also launch another 20 miniature stores.