Johannesburg – With the country well into the second wave of Covid-19, South Africa’s major retailer Pick n Pay has enhanced their safety measures for customers at their stores.
Supermarkets have played an essential service during lockdown as they work around the clock to deliver fresh produce and essential goods to customers.
John Bradshaw, retail executive of marketing at Pick n Pay, said that Pick n Pay has sharpened its safety measures first implemented when the country went into lockdown.
“We couldn’t be more proud of how our staff stepped up to serve our customers during the lockdown. We’ve kept our stores open, safe and well-stocked throughout COVID, and what’s really fantastic is that we have helped Feed the Nation Foundation distribute over 23 million meals to those in need.”
However, he says that now isn’t the time to be complacent with COVID-fatigue taking hold.
“We have reinforced staff health and safety training, with a particular focus on stores in hot spot areas. We have trained larger back-up teams to support stores as and when required, and have worked with suppliers to ensure an uninterrupted supply of goods over the season and beyond.
“In stores, our staff are screened daily and are practicing good hand hygiene. To keep a safe shopping environment, trolleys are sanitised before use and we are sanitising hands at entrances. Customers are reminded to adhere to floor markers and our organised queuing system helps maintain physical distancing should the maximum limit of customers in store be reached.”
All stores undergo Covid-cleaning every night as an added precaution.
Pick n Pay has also increased its online capacity to create more delivery slots for customers.
Pick n Pay’s online shop has more than doubled its slot capacity this year and can quickly adjust in line with demand so that customers are guaranteed delivery within two days, while its same-day delivery service through Bottles has extended its operating hours and expanded its driver capacity. The Bottles app is adding more stores in George and coastal areas ahead of the festive season to meet the anticipated demand for same-day orders.
“We anticipate that more customers will turn to online for their grocery needs during the country’s second wave, and our teams are ready to match this demand with our effective delivery options – irrespective of whether customers need a few items delivered within an hour, or a weekly shop delivered the next day.
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