Tracking the retail sector’s response to the coronavirus
Retail Technology Innovation Hub rounds up the key COVID-19 developments from last week.
Burberry is doing its bit in the fight against COVID-19.
Iceland MD Richard Walker has become the latest retailer to contradict coronavirus advice given by Boris Johnson last week.
More than 2,000 grocers across the US are ditching delivery fees for customers aged 60 and older on orders fulfilled by DoorDash during the coronavirus outbreak.
Kroger has shut down one of its Ohio stores to the public so it can focus on online pickup orders as demand for e-commerce services surges
Tesco’s Chief Technology Officer has applauded the grocery giant’s tech teams for their hard work during challenging times.
Stuart Rose, the former Marks & Spencer boss who now chairs Ocado, has called on Brits to stop stockpiling groceries.
Poundland stores are continuing to operate their regular hours amid the coronavirus outbreak. Some people are not happy about this and they’ve been kicking off on social media. Big mistake
The GMB union has hit out at Matalan for putting employees in danger by ignoring coronavirus guidelines.
It has also slammed Asos. The pureplay’s CEO Nick Beighton has, meanwhile, hit Twitter to take on his critics.
Thousands of 15-minute home tests for coronavirus will soon be available, via Amazon and Boots, to Brits self-isolating with symptoms, according to Public Health England (PHE).
Cash usage in Britain has halved in just a few days after Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlined strict new measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
McDonald’s has partnered with tech platform Food Drop to distribute food from its restaurants (now closed due to the coronavirus outbreak) to food banks and charities across the UK and Ireland.
Amazon Marketplace and eBay are not cracking down on unscrupulous third-party sellers attempting to profit from the coronavirus epidemic, according to the consumer group Which?
Amazon UK employees are ‘petrified’ of being infected by COVID-19 after working in packed warehouses, without hand sanitiser or personal protection equipment, according to the GMB union.
Waitrose has announced a series of social distancing measures for its UK stores.
These include a drive to encourage more customers to shop in a cashless way to prevent unnecessary contact. Staff members will guide customers where possible to download the app and use Waitrose Quick Check self-service technology and contactless card payments.
People are not happy with WHSmith and its attempts to portray itself as an essential retailer. And they’ve been letting the company have it on social media.
Retail technology salespeople need to rethink their approaches and techniques amid the coronavirus outbreak. So says Roger Bannister, Account Director at Vista Retail Support.
The contactless limit for in-store card transactions is increasing from £30 to £45, with the aim of reducing the need for physical contact with PIN-Entry Devices (PEDs) at points of sale.
The impact of coronavirus will wipe £12.6 billion from retail sales this year, according to GlobalData.
Morrisons has installed new protective screens at all its store checkouts. Lidl Ireland is also going down this route as is Aldi.
Waitrose stores are setting aside a proportion of hard to find and essential products from every delivery that arrives into its supermarkets, exclusively for NHS staff.
The latter will also be given priority checkout service, through either dedicated NHS checkouts, partners opening up new tills for them as needed or moving to the front of the queue.
Best Buy is limiting its US stores to contactless curbside service.
Instagram co-founder Mike Krieger and his wife Kaitlyn have launched SaveOurFaves, a directory of San Francisco Bay Area restaurants selling gift certificates to offset lost income during the coronavirus outbreak.
Many Brits have been highly critical of Waterstones and Pets at Home.
UK teachers have called on Sainsbury’s to include them in its coronavirus-related dedicated shopping hour initiative, which currently covers the elderly, vulnerable and NHS and social care workers.
The John Lewis Partnership has temporarily closed all of its 50 John Lewis stores.
