Jewellers respond to mandatory face coverings for customers visiting stores
16 Jul 2020
Image: A shopper in a supermarket wearing a face mask, which in England will be mandatory from 24th July.
From 24th July, customers visiting Jewellers in England will be required to wear face coverings while the requirement for shoppers in Wales and Northern Ireland is kept under review.
The requirement was announced the week after many Jewellers in Scotland re-opened on 10th July with the need to wear face coverings already in place, in line with major European nations like Spain, Italy and Germany.
Anna Blackburn, Managing Director of Beaverbrooks, said,
“I believe making face coverings mandatory in shops is a really positive step. As well as promoting safety, it will give consumers more confidence to return to their local jewellers, which is important for making considered purchases of sentimental items such as jewellery and watches, which we know customers want to see and try on in person.
“As per the guidelines in Scotland, customers in our Scottish stores wear face coverings, and we’ve traded well since opening which gives us confidence for the same measures being implemented in our English stores. I therefore hope that mandatory face coverings will result in jewellery retailers welcoming more customers through their doors.”
The National Association of Jewellers has reissued it’s StoreSafe guidance today (version 5), incorporating the mandatory face covering requirement from 24th July in England. Regional legislation is also introduced to the guidance, and suspension of ear-piercing services has been removed following updated guidance which came into force on Monday.
The jewellery retailer Be COVID-19 safe course has also been updated in parallel to version 5 guidance.
Download version 5 Jewellery retailer guidance
Take Be COVID-19 Safe Retailer course
The version 5 guidance is published alongside an additional StoreSafe poster for jewellers to make visiting customers aware face coverings are mandatory, and customers will be required to show their face before entering the store.
Download poster
Reacting to the new guidance with face coverings, NAJ Chair Gary Wroe said,
“We’re are of course guided by government in this area, but it is just disappointing that many members have gone above and beyond to protect the buying experience the best they can with risk mitigation in place, spending money, and this additional measure has arrived after the decision to reopen.
“What this does do however is provide further assurances to individuals who have not felt comfortable to return to the traditional high street. We will continue to monitor the guidance from UK governments and inform members accordingly”.
NAJ Members continue to use the Better Business Support Service hotline which offers unlimited advice for HR, Legal, tax and Health and Safety matters as well as more than 700 editable template resources.
Access the better business hotline
In addition to the version 5 retailer guidance and Better Business hotline, the NAJ member documents area also hosts useful information, provided by T.H. March, including how to prepare for a second wave of COVID-19.
Download how to prepare for a second wave guidance
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Source: The NAJ