Sailor regularly at chic counters (5)
I believe the answer is:
abaci
'counters' is the definition.
(plural of abacus, something used for counting)
'sailor regularly at chic' is the wordplay.
'sailor' becomes 'ab' (abbreviation for able seaman).
'regularly' indicates alternate letters (regularly take one letter, leave next etc.).
'at'+'chic'='atchic'
The alternating letters of 'atchic' are 'aci'.
'ab'+'aci'='ABACI'
(Other definitions for abaci that I've seen before include "They once reckoned" , "You can count on them" , "help for summer" , "frames" , "Counters" .)