Doesn’t clothes shopping - and simple pleasures like browsing the rails, touching the fabrics, trying things on - seem like a distant memory? It might soon be part of the ‘new normal’ as non-essential shops, according to Boris Johnson’s statement on Sunday, could open as early June if the rate of infection continues to stay below 1.
But what will it be like? And how will shops be prioritising the health of workers and customers in accordance with new government guidelines? It’s early days, with many shops contacted for this story saying that they’re still putting a plan together for reopening, but what’s clear is that it won’t be your average shopping experience.
Lee Whittle, customer experience director at department store Browns, says that the team is closely looking at government, NHS and WHO advice and will only reopen when it is safe to do so. ‘We want to ensure that we have taken the necessary steps to keep our teams and customers safe,’ he said. This will involve safe-guarding measures such as social distancing, sanitiser stations and controlled traffic through a single entry and exit.
In terms of its employees, the store will be providing face masks and gloves, and has made sure to communicate throughout the reopening planning process. ‘Communication throughout this period is key,’ says Lee. ‘We have been working closely with the team, and a group of customers, asking for their feedback about what they would like to see and what they expect from us. We will be taking all these ideas into consideration, along with government guidelines, to ensure that our teams are both safe and comfortable with the return.’
Selfridges reopened its food hall at the beginning of May, with stringent social distancing measures that are likely to be replicated if and when the clothes floors follow suit in June. They’re limiting the number of customers at any one time, with one person per 20m2, and are maintaining a strict 2m distance between customers inside and customers queuing outside. There’s also a one-way system for entering and exiting, sanitiser stations through the space, deep-cleaning every evening, protective screens at tills, temperature scans for employees and an increased limit of £45 for contactless payments to encourage customers to touch as little as possible.
Kurt Geiger has announced it's gradually preparing to open stores from 1st June. Each store will be fully reconfigured to be Covid secure with new health and safety measures. Every customer will have 15sqm of space, which is double the government guidelines, and staff will be monitoring social distancing of 2 metres at all times. Plus, perspex screens will be installed at all cash desks, where card-only payments will be taken.
If you want a quick visual of how shops might look post-lockdown, picture supermarkets and pharmacies, with their spaced-out queues, controlled entrances/exits, limits on the number of customers at any one time and, in some cases, face masks. It might not be the leisurely shopping experience you’re used to, but it’s a step in the right direction.