Sometimes it can be alarming to go to Walmart and see that only a certain amount of people are being let in. It can be scary to enter the toilet paper aisle and see totally bare shelves, and a sign that states a customer can only purchase two items to ensure their neighbors get provided for as well.
These new rules would have been unfathomable a couple of weeks ago. However, these scary changes are all being implemented as an effort to return to normalcy. In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and flatten the curve, essential businesses, including Walmart, Target and Kroger, have decided to limit the number of customers allowed inside the store at one time.
Each store has varying rules regarding capacity that have already been established, however with a pandemic on the rise, stores must accommodate to the times and focus on what’s best for the health of the public. Target has altered its capacity rules to depend on the square footage of the individual property. Walmart has decided to permit up to five people in the store for every 1,000 square feet. This comes to roughly 20% of the store’s capacity. Stores may lose profit as a result of these decisions, however, they are made in an effort to maintain the health and safety of the public, according to data provided by The Motley Fool.
“Kroger’s introduction of customer capacity limits is one more way we are doing our part to flatten the curve while operating as an essential business, providing our customers with access to fresh, affordable food and products,” said Kroger Senior Vice President Mary Ellen Adcock in a press release, according to The Motley Fool.
“Grocery stores are bringing on additional off-duty police officers and private security guards to help manage crowded aisles, long lines and jammed parking lots during the coronavirus outbreak,” according to CNN Business.
The pandemic has resulted in shortages throughout grocery stores nationwide, and has apparently even prompted the need for law enforcement in some crowded areas. Most stores around the country are also limiting the number of items that an individual can purchase, typically limiting it to one or two. Perhaps companies are concerned that the lack of products available will result in violence among customers.
