Limiting the number of customers in stores: There is a risk of panic shopping, warns chains

“It is important to note that such a fundamental change in the operation of stores requires a number of measures and during a single day, in addition to the holidays, it is extremely difficult to prepare hundreds of stores. “it is not able to install anything like this in hundreds of stores during a single holiday. We will do everything we can to ensure that the population continues to be safely supplied with food from our stores, as before,” added Mareček.

According to Bill, company spokeswoman Dana Bratánková, the approved measure will have the exact opposite effect. “Our calculations show that we will not be able to serve up to 50 percent of our customers when this measure is implemented, which is likely to cause panic, chaos and, in extreme cases, hostility among customers again,” she said. According to her, people will also want to pre-supply food again, as in the spring wave of the pandemic.

According to Bratánková, Billa will limit the number of shopping carts and baskets to reach the limit per square meter. Compliance with the regulation will be coordinated by staff from security agencies. In case of trouble, they will ask the police for help, she said.

Extension of shopping time

Globus hypermarkets are also preparing for the measure. Company spokeswoman Lutfia Volf did not give details. According to her, Globus hypermarkets are very safe shops from a hygienic point of view, because they are the largest among domestic hypermarkets in terms of area. “In addition, we adhere to above-standard hygiene measures and customers buy a lot from us with modern technologies, such as scanners and mobile applications,” she added.

The rules for the release model are also being addressed by Tesco, in cooperation with the Confederation of Trade and Tourism and the Ministry of Industry. She wants to use the system she tested in stores, said Teska spokeswoman Václav Koukolíček.

From Wednesday, salespeople will also have the task of managing queues in and in front of stores and supervising the observance of two-meter distances between people. In contrast to the current rules, the opening hours of the shops will be extended from 21:00 on Wednesday, when the curfew will apply.

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