My Ikea experience shows how we can restart shopping safely: Jayne Dowle

The last thing any of us wants after these long months of lockdown is to be trampled in a stampede to buy summer clothes.

While rules on social distancing and hygiene are relatively clear, at least until the Prime Minister decides to implement the one-metre gap (or not), retailers face their own challenges.

Never has the science of human behaviour been so important in determining how a country should be run. However, the reopening of clothing stores, toy shops, bookshops, beauty retailers, department stores and so on from today presents a complex new set of considerations.

It’s not just the health of the nation at stake but the future of retail and our already-beleaguered high streets and town centres.

Retailers accept they must calibrate a delicate balance; reassure their customers but not frighten them away for good. Obviously, measures will differ depending on the size of the shop. What works in an independent boutique won’t be right for a department store.

However, seeing as Boris had his five tests for easing lockdown, I’ve devised my own list of five things all retailers might like to bear in mind this week.

The first is to ban gang culture. In the supermarket there is nothing more annoying than politely trying to abide by social distancing – cue lots of “excuse mes” and “sorrys” – only to be overwhelmed by a family of five or six, usually with a toddler in the trolley along for the ride.

They say three’s a crowd but I’d say it’s the maximum allowed at once into any retail outlet, at least for now.

Fewer people in groups also means shorter queues. Kind of. I mused on this theory as I sat waiting for my new living-room rug to be order-picked in Sheffield’s Ikea last week. Castigate me if you must but I can’t see the point in making a habit of speaking up in favour of retailers and not actually shopping.

Anyway, I found the whole Ikea experience very effective. One thing I noted was the excellent communication skills of all the staff we encountered. Particularly impressive was the young woman with the loud-hailer who counted down the minutes to opening time as we all stood outside waiting to get in.

When my husband and I finally reached the front of the queue she was obliged to tell us the lift had temporarily broken down and we must all wait a little longer. Such was the confident and efficient nature of her communication skills we didn’t blink.

Other retailers could learn a lot from this. I like the traffic-light system at Aldi, for example, which allows one person in at time but nothing beats the human touch when it comes to keeping customers informed.

As we stood in the Ikea queue – under cover from the rain, I may add – I also got to thinking about how such huge retail stores have become the new airports, at least for this summer, as flying still seems like a distant dream.

When you’re checking in your baggage, airline staff work the queue to minimise pressure at the sharp end, the actual check-in desk. Why don’t the larger retailers organise their staff to do the same, dealing with queries to enable a smoother shopping experience and even taking orders for standard items from customers, to minimise browsing time?

We’re all learning so many ways to think differently. This should include local councils. Revenue streams are more precious than ever now but if town halls want town centres raising back to life they should hold off parking charges for at least six months.

If there has been any pleasure to be gained from lockdown it’s been the freedom to pull up without a traffic warden lying in wait. I know this can’t continue indefinitely but for now it would be a boost.

And, for goodness sake, please open the toilets. On a quick sortie to the garden centre the other week I was relieved (in more ways than one) to find the facilities were not locked. If they can do it without fuss why can’t major shopping malls and, indeed, local councils?

These days, most retail outlets and shopping centres pride themselves on their cleanliness. Toilet attendants, who presumably will be wearing the necessary protective gear, are already well versed in the correct use of disinfectant. And who loiters for more than 15 minutes in the loo anyway?

There is much that is illogical about the rules relating to lifting lockdown but I simply don’t get the one about keeping lavatories shut.

I remember hearing of people doing unspeakable things in car parks at Flamborough Head when travel restrictions lifted.

I think we can manage this shopping business in a far more civilised manner.

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