LIFE AFTER LOCKDOWN: FIRST LOOK INSIDE M&S
‘A friendly till worker discreetly lathered her hands in sanitiser’
MARKS & Spencer staff have been radically refitting their stores so they can fully reopen to customers next Monday.
That is when the Government’s bar on nonessential shops will be lifted.
M&S, which has kept its food outlets going during lockdown, will reopen the clothes, home and beauty sections in its stores in England that day.
Retail operations director Andrew Walmsley said: “Our store teams have been brilliant at implementing the necessary social distancing and hygiene measures to help customers shop for our food, and we’ll be bringing those lessons over to clothing and home.”
So we sent a reporter to a revamped store to discover what customers can expect...
FOR the first time in months, I replaced my online shopping basket with a real one as I entered Marks & Spencer’s megastore, The Pantheon, on London’s Oxford Street.
The first things that welcomed me were stations of hand sanitiser. I had come armed with my own bottle but I figured dousing my hands with more could not hurt.
Once inside I was struck most by the cavernous space. Clothes rails, tills and displays have been placed much further apart than usual to allow for social distancing. In fact the whole store has been redesigned.
I pranced around the strategically placed racks, eyeing the latest sales items in the comfort of knowing that all the other racks were at least 2m away from me.
Despite enjoying the extra space, I could not help but think my days of browsing might have come to an end. No more jostling with other customers to grab a bargain. Instead, I expect I’ll be more likely to make quick dashes in and out of shops for essentials.
In the M&S store the floor was marked with reminders urging people to stay 2m apart from each other.
Blessed
This will be particularly important when people rush to take advantage of the Rainbow Sales of stock that M&S was unable to sell while stores were shut for nearly three months.The company, which launched the event online two weeks ago, will donate 10 per cent of the purchase price – excluding VAT – of all Rainbow Sale items to NHS Charities Together.
As I shopped, I couldn’t miss the luminescent yellow tape and green warning stickers that show shoppers what 2m apart looks like. Customers are urged to stand on a green sticker and wait for the person on a sticker in front of them to move on.
I picked up a jumpsuit and headed for the changing rooms, only to be greeted by a large sign telling me they were closed.
But M&S has extended its return policy to 90 days, meaning customers can buy then try clothes at home and return them to stores within three months if they’re not quite right.
The retailer has also said it is quarantining items that are returned before putting them back on shelves to limit the spread of Covid-19.
Luckily, during this particular shopping spree, I was not looking to get my bra fitted, as the close-contact service has been temporarily shut.
But a store worker told me I could use the enhanced bra-fit tool on the
M&S website if I needed to. I was also not chasing new make-up, but finding the perfect shade of powder for my complexion could have proved tricky anyway, as all testers have been removed.
And forget relaxing with a snack and drink at the in-store cafe – as they are not accepting eat-in orders.
However you can buy takeaways. And you may want to skip the drink-any way because the store loos are closed.
M&S, like many retailers, will not be reopening its toilets anytime soon. So my biggest tip for anyone venturing back into the world of high-street shopping is to limit the number of drinks you have beforehand
And check your local store's opening times before you visit s they might well have changed. Retail
operations director Andrew Walmsley tells people planning a trip to a M&S: “Whilst shopping may feel different, there will still be the same great service and expert advice customers expect, as well as more digital solutions to supplement the in-store experience.”
Towards the end of my visit, I headed with a full basket to the tills, all of which have been fitted with tall perspex screens. A friendly staffer called Stacy welcomed me then discreetly lathered her hands in sanitiser before picking up the items I was buying. She asked if I was more comfortable packing the clothes or whether she could do it for me. I chose the latter.
One contactless payment later and I was back out the door, with two shopping bags to show for it. So much has changed since I last went shopping for clothes – including the season – but with a raft of special measures in place I felt completely safe and I will be definitely be coming back soon.