all new Phil wrote: ↑Thu 23 Apr, 2020 21.35
Waitrose near me have just made part of the store one way, barriering off parts so people have to follow it. In all honesty it was better without, as now it creates a backlog when one person stops right in the middle of the aisle (as many of their predominantly boomer audience seem to enjoy doing).
I remember an obscure supermarket chain called Norman's in the 80's and 90's. My local store was essentially a disparate collection of outbuildings linked together and therefore customers were essentially marched through the store in a specific order, with no way to go back if you forgot anything and anyone not moving forward holding it up for everyone. Questions about what would ever happen if there was a fire in the store were rife till the day it shut. Yet in 2020 we seem to be re-introducing these measures.
Had a bit of an altercation in Sainsbury's a couple of days ago..they've resisted a blanket one way system but they have installed one (with metal barriers down the middle and all) on the fresh meat aisle. We were all a bit frustrated with the old bat in front of us feeling the need to individually examine, squeeze and check the date on every pack of beef mince preventing anyone else from moving forward, but nothing spelt 'not getting the crisis' to me like the twat that ran in to me from behind to grab a pack of meat, infringing into my marked out 2 metre box which I was complying with, and when I turned around I see him wearing an N95 face mask which front line health professionals can't get, latex gloves on top of other gloves and a thick winter coat buttoned up to the collar - so he takes the whole situation so seriously that he protects himself to the extent that he might be protected from a small nuclear explosion yet doesn't bat an eyelid at pushing me out of the way (wearing no PPE at all because A) I don't believe it's necessary if you are respecting social distancing and B) even if it is, I'd rather the healthcare workers had it) in case I get the last piece of Topside joint with Salt & Pepper crust.
Part of me wishes supermarkets introduce a separate queue for people who have made amateur hazmat arrangements and they are forced to wait until last to enter.