Sainsbury’s, Balham

Sainsbury’s, Balham, is a key service for the people of Balham and nearby. Due to how large the store is, its proximity to the tube and train station, bus stops, and how large the carpark is, Sainsbury’s, Balham, attracts hundreds of customers every day. Whilst there is a pandemic going on, people are still in need of their grocery shopping trips, many of which take place in Balham Sainsbury’s. Being a high in demand store attracting many customers every day, Sainsbury’s, Balham, have put in place some specific measures in line with Government advice and restrictions due to Covid-19.

The first of these measures is aimed to aid elderly and disabled shoppers as well as NHS and Social Care workers as Sainsbury’s strive to give all of their customers the best service during these uncertain times. Sainsbury’s, Balham, will be dedicated to serving elderly and disabled customers between 8am and 9am on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. the designated days as well as timings should hopefully encourage (those it applies to) to shop exclusively at these times, meaning there is less of a risk of them coming in to contact with loads of people who may expose themselves to the virus more so due to not being a high risk patient.

Outside the front of the supermarket (facing the A24) there have been stickers place on the ground two metres apart to guide customers to queue in an orderly fashion and safely socially distanced. The stickers sport a Sainsbury’s colour scheme, with orange footprints on a burgundy background, and head down towards Hildreth Street. As a result, there is less confusion for customers about which way to queue which causes less crowding on the street. It also sets out a clear guide to customers on queueing in that particular area, ensuring that they can stay safely socially distancing as they shop.

To help guide customers and regulate the number of people inside the store, there is a designated marshal who monitors the queue. This ensures the safety of customers and employees as it avoids over-crowding inside the building which could increase the chance of passing on the virus to many at a time. In order to help out NHS and Social Workers during a time when we need them most, Sainsbury’s, Balham, allow these key workers to skip the queue when they provide valid ID. This is one of many ways Balham Sainsbury’s looks out for our key workers in this unprecedented time and ensures that they can continue doing all they can to push the UK through the pandemic, by making sure they can stock their fridges with ease.

In-store, the face to face food counters are temporarily closed to limit the amount of face to face contact between employees and customers, a measure implemented to crack down on the spread of the virus and potential infection of Sainsbury’s workers. However, for customers who are big fans of the ‘El Luchador’ fresh Mexican food brand or the ‘Sushi Daily’ fresh Japanese food brand at Sainsbury’s, a selection of their items are still available at the counters every day, customers can purchase them through the self-checkout. By doing so, Sainsbury’s, Balham, vow to keep customer satisfaction at an all-time high and which raises morale during the pandemic.

Customers are encouraged to use the self-checkout system to limit contact between employee and customer in an effort to flatten the curve of infection. At the beginning of the pandemic, Balham Sainsbury’s had closed off every second checkout point to maintain social distancing rules indoors. Recently, they have installed large plastic screens in-between each checkout to allow more people to use the self-checkouts, increasing the momentum of shoppers paying and leaving, and preventing the spread of the virus through close proximity, allowing business to run as smoothly, quickly, and safely as possible during the pandemic.

Address: 147-151 Balham High Road, London SW12 9AU

No. 020 8675 1162

Website: https://www.sainsburys.co.uk

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