How Has Your Supermarket Big Shop Changed?

The supermarket ‘big shop’ used to be something of an event, piling the kids in the car and trawling the aisles at leisure. Now it’s all gone a bit hunger games…

The coronavirus restrictions have meant that we’re all ‘self isolating’ and we’re encouraged to only visit the shops occasionally and only for essentials. Which means that things have become rather Mad Max at the supermarket, with a full-pelt dash to the loo roll aisle followed by a supermarket sweep of the tinned food and the ever-dwindling wine section. In response, the supermarkets have mixed things up a little, here’s how…

Queues

Supermarkets are reducing the number of people allowed in the shop at any time. So expect to queue outside for quite some time, with one-in-one-out a bit like it’s Mahiki on a Friday night. Except with no guarantee of booze and you’re all at least six feet apart… Marshalls at the supermarkets are keeping tabs to ensure that the numbers remain constant and that the queues are orderly, but make sure you plan for the line if you’re hoping to nip out in your lunchbreak.

Reduced Hours

If you’re used to shopping at crazy o’clock then maybe reassess. A number of supermarkets have reduced their regular hours to allow them time to restock overnight. Tesco Extra stores, for instance, are now generally open only between 6am and 10pm, which for most people offers options. Asda won’t be running 24 hour shops any longer, while Sainsburys is now on an 8am to 8pm.

Older And Vulnerable People

Shops are also making allowances for the older and vulnerable, who are particularly at risk from other shoppers but also are less well suited for the elbows-out fight for the last packet of Andrex. This is also open to NHS workers, who are often welcome in these hours as well. Sainsbury’s, for instance, is open just for NHS workers and the vulnerable between 8am and 9am (although most front-line NHS staff are likely finishing their night shifts or starting their day shifts at this time).

Limited Availability

You’ll notice that the opportunities to stockpile certain goods simply isn’t there as supermarkets reduce the availability of certain items. If you’re hoping to build a mountain of loo roll or a lake of baby milk the you’ll be disappointed as they’re the sorts of items limited to two per person. This also applies to items including pasta and nappies.

Cashless Payments

Cash is no longer king, as it can transmit coronavirus. Kind of obvious given how dirty the stuff is. So where possible shops are encouraging contactless payment from your card or your phone. Perhaps this will hasten the demise of loose change. Ironically, though, most stores still require you to put a pound into the trolley.

Online Deliveries

Clearly Boris doesn’t do the Downing Street internet shop, because as he urged us all on Monday to shop online millions of Brits threw up their hands in despair at the near impossibility of finding a delivery slot. Some retailers, like Sainsbury’s, are not allowing new signups to their home delivery service, cutting off potentially vulnerable people who will have to head in-store instead (they do have a number you can call, but it’s proving impossible for many to get through). However, help is on the way as the shops pour resources into online deliveries. The government has tried to help too, removing the 5p bag charge on online items.

Protection For Employees

Don’t be too perturbed if you suddenly notice that you’re talking to your cashier through perspex, as supermarkets are putting up protective screens to help keep their staff out of sneezing range. They’ll also be wearing gloves and regularly sanitising their workspace. It makes you wonder how filthy their shops were before…

Queues In Store

As well as the mandated six foot distance between those lined up to enter the stores, expect the same inside as well, as shoppers queue to pay. However, often the limited numbers of shoppers means (where supermarkets provide adequate numbers of cashiers) that queues to pay are a lot shorter than we’re used to.

What About Wine?

If you’ve noticed that the stock in your local supermarket has been a little low of late and you’ve resorted to Tesco’s ambiguously named £4 ‘Spanish Red’ then fear not. The government have just announced that Offlicences are to be declared as ‘Essential’ and so allowed to remain open. Sigh of relief…

Deep cleaning

Marks & Spencer have committed to cleaning all baskets, trolleys and customer touch points every hour during store opening hours, while they’re also going to be deep cleaning the stores overnight. Most shops are following suit, meaning that we can be a little less concerned about picking up the virus from our baskets.

 

It’s notable that one of the most recognisable and mundane daily chores, shopping for loo roll, has changed so dramatically in such a short time. These changes are just one aspect of life that the coronavirus, something we’d not even heard of just a few short months ago, has upended life in Britain.