As panic over the spread of the coronavirus has started to increase, South Africans have started stocking up on essentials, prompting several retailers to consider implementing restrictions on certain goods.
It was bound to happen. In light of the latest coronavirus infection statistics as outlined by Health Minister Zweli Mkhize as well as directives given by various government departments, South Africans have started panic buying. On Monday, social media was awash with images of long queues of customers at certain Makro stores looking to buy groceries in bulk. Other images showed the empty shelves of what are believed to be other local stores.
“We are working especially hard to replenish hand sanitisers, cleaning supplies, paper products, and other in-demand items as quickly as possible and at our everyday low prices. We are working equally hard to secure sanitising and cleaning supplies for our own use in our stores,” said Makro. Makro also stated that they would be providing hand sanitisers at store entrances, high-touch point areas and at customer check-out, and that they would be intensifying staff awareness of personal preventative measures to protect their health and that of customers.
According to the retailer, their customers have been buying responsibly for the most part and stocking up on what they usually buy. “Understandably, as they read and act on the advice they are receiving, they are buying more household cleaning and personal hygiene products, and we’ve seen demand for these products increase over the past week,” added Pick n Pay.
Like Makro, Pick n Pay has also implemented precautionary safety measures in their stores including advising customers and staff on effective hygiene measures including frequent and proper hand washing, making more hand sanitiser available for customers and staff, devoting more time and resources to in-store cleaning regimes and working closely with shopping centre landlords to ensure they put additional hygiene measures in place in the overall property.
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