High Street to Reopen with the New Normal: Social Distancing, Sales Extravaganza and Out-of-Town Stores

The London Streets that inspired the writer of Harry Potter, JK Rowling, starts to wake up from the lockdown coma. What Britons call it a perfect place for shopping and the dazzling night life had slipped through the cracks of coronavirus in March 2020 when the entire country went into a lockdown to contain the fatal COVID-19 disease.

Now, the United Kingdom has ‘passed the peak’, putting the lid on eerily silence spread around the London's eclectic architectural heritage. The High Streets have already started preparing to welcome back the British shoppers in a safe and restricted environment. UK’s iconic High Street is like a one stop destination for all the luxury brands and stores that sells everything from fashion and food to technology and homeware. But will shopping on high street ever be the same again?

As High Street stores prepare to reopen on 15 June, let’s see how shopping would look like in the age of COVID-19.

Social Distancing Norms

Responsible social distancing is now the new normal that means maintaining at least 2m of distance from other people. The non-essential retailers are to open doors for shoppers but would allow only limited number of people in-store at any one time to ensure social distancing measures with spacious shopping experience. This measure would lead to the longstanding queues waiting outside the stores within the marked circles on floor.

Brands are most likely to have ‘social distance wardens’ to greet shoppers on the gate, dressed in essential personal protective equipment. The objective of those employees would be to ensure people are obeying the social distancing rules and are apart from each other.

What shoppers can expect in completely changed scenario of shopping

High Streets are likely to reopen in phases with relatively small percentage of stores expected to resume operations from the coming month. The brands are focused on taking cautious approach to provide safe as well as leisure experiences in-stores.

Retailers fear what would be the future of shopping? Will shoppers return to high street stores after almost three months in lockdown? The coronavirus has definitely shaken people’s reality but the optimism of bringing lives back to normal has built stronger over time.

Companies have ‘enhanced’ their health and safety measures. The most trending changes in shopping landscape include:

• Hand Sanitizer readily available on entrance and within the stores
• Arrow on the floor directing shoppers which way round to go in order to ensure reasonable social distancing from others
• Perspex screens with shield checkouts
• Employees wearing face mask, gloves and other crucial personal protective gears
• To offer the best possible services, the companies have ‘enhanced’ health and safety measures.
• Cleaning of door handles, lift buttons and hand rails at regular interval of times
• Encouraging customers to shop alone where possible and make cash-less payments

Shift in Consumer Habits

The High Street shutdown has changed many shopping habits ‘forever’, told Steve Rowe, Chief Executive Officer of Marks & Spencer. He told that the public health emergency would ramp up the switch from the high street to online, triggering the big shift in way people shopped, dressed and ate.

Undoubtedly, there has been a paradigm shift in consumers’ habits mostly centric to the use of internet. From work-from-home to online shopping, people have figured out the every possible way to continue their normal lives in lockdown. But people are vulnerable to COVID-19 and are still not comfortable in going out. Moreover, the ease of online shopping has ward off people to move out and spend time standing in long queues for shopping that too in restricted environment.

Further due to large number of lay-offs, many people are struggling through the financial crunch which stops them from spending money on non-essential products.

What’s in the Mind of High Street Brands?

As the United Kingdom approaches to the end of lockdown, the companies listed on the London Stock Exchange have come up with new ideas to follow the trends of coronavirus era.

Face Mask Look by Mango- The fashion industry has a new gear in its closet! Spanish Clothing brand Mango has been the first one to launch cotton face masks in the retail stores. It comes in floral print, animal print as well as in plain black to encourage shoppers buy the branded face mask that has become mandatory to be worn by the passengers.

Spacious Primark Stores- High Street, where the world’s biggest Primark is located, now sets to reopen with adequate health and safety policies in place. Primark has told media that strict social distancing plans have been mapped out that would make the global budget retailer stores look very different from what it used to in the crowded spaces earlier.

Associated British Food (LON:ABF) held company, Primark is reportedly working in line with the health and safety guidelines of the Government to follow the social distancing protocol, providing personal protection for employees and customers, and increased in-store cleaning. ABF is trading at GBX 1,975, up 8.48 per cent, on June 1 as at 1:10 PM GMT.

Next Plc Moves Out-of-Town- British multinational retailer Next PLC confirmed to reopen its 25 branches from June 15 while more of its 500 stores are expected to reopen later. Next told that it stores would be larger outlets this time in locations out-of-town so that shoppers can drive to them easily rather than taking public transport and big stores would provide the plenty of space to obey the social distancing norms in a pleasant shopping environment. Next PLC (LON:NXT) stock is trading at GBX 5,104, up 4.93 per cent, on June 1 as at 1:12 PM GMT.

‘Mother of all sales’ by John Lewis and M&S- A string of high street stalwarts are to unravel ‘mother of all sales.’ The most famous ones to confirm the move are high street favorites John Lewis and Marks & Spencer which are expected to slash the cloth and accessories prices by up to 70 per cent upon re-opening.

The nationwide lockdown has left many of these high street giants with billions of stocks lying in their warehouse and stores. Mark & Spencer has already launched its half-price Rainbow Sale while John Lewis also strategies to reopen its stores in phases depending on how staff and customers respond to the openings of its first two stores.

Mark & Spencer (LON:MKS) stock is trading at GBX 102.60, up 4.95 per cent, on June 1 as at 1:13 PM GMT.

With the reopening of thousands of high street shops, departments and shopping centres in the Government’s three-phased lockdown exit strategy, the shoppers are eagerly waiting to enjoy the freedom and hustle of busy streets around the United Kingdom. But as the Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned any negligence to health and social distancing measures could lead to second wave of infections.