Retailers adapt to support staff and communities amidst lockdown

Changing with the times
The sheer volume of orders coupled with government guidelines means many retailers have had to shift their priorities in recent weeks. For family-run food shop Partridges, that meant canceling the regular Saturday food market, encouraging customers to pay by card instead of cash, extending opening hours and suspending online shopping and delivery services.

Following hectic weeks of panic-buying, the company is now trying to manage with staff absences as well, a common issue across the industry.

Managing director John Shepherd said: “We have been flat out over the past two weeks coping with panic-buying and staff shortages – all the while trying to maintain government guidelines with the two-metre rule and limiting customer numbers in the shop.

“Staff are naturally concerned for their families, and many have childcare issues. As far as we are aware, no one has actually contracted COVID19, but many are taking precautions. Earlier this week we had around 9 staff members off from a shift of 15. Everything is being handled on a day-to-day basis, and we are relying on key individuals to keep things going.”


Facing the challenge head-on
“In 21 years, I have had some challenging times, but nothing quite like this!”
For Paul Hargreaves, chief executive of distributor Cotswold Fayre, the biggest challenge is ensuring suppliers are able to continue replacing stock that is flying out of the company’s warehouse, following a three-fold increase in orders last week alone. While some shops are closing, convenience stores and farm shops, as Hargreaves noted, are over-trading by huge volumes.

It may be unprecedented times, but despite the challenges, there are some positives: “What has encouraged me immensely over the past week or so is the number of good news stories of local shops providing delivery services to the weak and vulnerable in their communities,” Hargreaves said. “Shopping in supermarkets over the past two weeks has become a frightening experience for many old people, and local shops have provided a service that enables people to stay safe in their homes. In addition, independent retailers have managed to keep stock on their shelves better than most of the supermarkets.”

Supporting the local community
While many stores have witnessed a dramatic increase in sales, the demand has seen companies struggle to restock at the same rate. Claire Rosier, manager of Burwash Larder, said that stock is changing by the hour, meaning the company has had to close its online ordering system. But Burwash Larder has adapted by offering a shop service, with call and collect and delivery options available to its customers. “We are at the heart of our community and we are determined to support them,” Rosier said. “We have been overwhelmed by our local community, too. We even had a customer offer to do all the deliveries as he wanted to support the community.”

Aside from supporting customers, Claire noted that one of the main issues companies face today is having a team to deliver and support each other: “The key element is ensuring our staff are well and have time out during these incredibly busy days. We have had to shorten our opening hours to ensure that we have time to pack and deliver consumer orders.

“It’s important for companies to consider staff safety. You are asking your staff to put themselves on the front line, and you need to ensure their wellbeing.”

Making difficult decisions
For businesses, unprecedented times like this mean owners are faced with difficult decisions. “The Covid-19 experience is obviously something none of us have ever come across and hopefully, when it’s over, will never have to experience again,” Mark Kacary, owner of The Norfolk Deli, said. “There are numerous challenges, from deciding whether or not you should be open (we have conflicting thoughts), to cleaning regimes. We find ourselves asking: ‘Do we accept cash or cards only? Do we try and manage the number of people in the shop at any one time? What services (if any) can we offer and deliver on to make up the cash shortfalls. Do we lose staff? What do we do regarding landlords and any regular large payments when we’re in a position where there is uncertainty as to whether we can stay open or not?’

“Fortunately, we have always pushed our website, and this is currently giving us approximately 50% of our daily turnover. We quickly pulled together elements of the website to create a home delivery service, which is showing signs of providing some revenue. We have also started a two-minute video each morning for our followers/customers, where we talk about issues such as the use of gloves when visiting us, the importance of hand-washing, and now we’re starting to introduce our Norfolk producers one-by-one – this allows us to promote their products and to try and generate online sales to support the producers and maintain our cash flow.”