Martensville Food Store manager, Jackie Southam and her team have beenworking diligently through these extraordinary circumstances of COVID 19 to provide a safe place for our team members and our guests.
In addition to increasing the intensity and frequency of cleaning in the store, we have educated all of our team members about enhanced hygiene practices and guidelines, and asked them to stay home if they are feeling ill or have been possibly exposed to COVID-19.
Here are some of the other things we have done across all of our locations and food stores in particular:
• Signage, physical barriers and visual cues have been installed in all of our locations to remind our guests of proper social distancing and other health and safety practices while shopping. Floor decals now indicate proper distancing at the checkouts.
• We have started controlling the number of shoppers in our locations, and will expand this practice as needed.
• Purchase limits are in place on high-demand essential items including toilet paper, other paper products, and sanitizing products.
• An Early Shopping hour (8-9am every day) is reserved for our elderly and vulnerable guests.
• We have suspended our reusable bag program and the charge for plastic bags, and are asking customers not to
bring reusable bags in our stores.
• We have temporarily removed self-serve bulk bins, hot prepared foods and salad bar items from our stores. Food
sampling has also been discontinued.
• Plexiglass barriers have been installed at some checkouts and we are installing these at all checkouts in our food stores as the material becomes available from suppliers.
Here are some of the things we are asking our members and guests to do to help keep everyone safe:
• If you are ill, have travelled internationally in the past 14 days, or have been in contact with someone who has contracted the COVID-19 virus, please do not enter our stores.
• Maintain at least 2 metres between you and all others at all times.
• One family member shopping at a time. Please do not shop in groups.
• Please do not bring reusable bags into our stores. We are temporarily suspending the charge for plastic bags.
• Please obey signage and markings on the floor in our stores.
• Please touch only the items you intend to buy.
• To limit contact and cash handling, please use debit or credit payment if possible. Use tap to pay if possible.
• Be patient as our team members work hard to stock our shelves, and take extra breaks during the day to wash their hands and sanitize high-touch surfaces.
We are all in this together. The community can truly help by offering to shop for someone who is vulnerable or self-isolating, shopping alone and less frequently (every 1-2 weeks or less) and practicing good hygiene while in all public places (wash hands frequently, and when you can’t, don’t touch your face). We rely on all of our guests to do their part in maintaining a safe place to shop, and a safe place for all of our team members to continue to work. And a ‘thank you’ goes a long way!
I’d also like to point out that we operate the Co-op gas bar and convenience store, and the team members there have done an exceptional job of adapting to this crisis as well. We did just temporarily discontinue full-service in order to keep our pump attendants safe from personal contact and possible transmission, and are now better able to sanitize high-touch surfaces throughout the day.
Martensville Food Store Manager, Jackie Southam added, “Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of the Martensville community. We appreciate the community for their patience in these extraordinary circumstances as we put these measures in to place to keep our team members and customers safe. We are honored and happy to be serving Martensville and the surrounding area.
Thank you to all the staff at Martensville Co-op grocery story and Co-op gas bar for all that you have done and continue to do to create a safe environment. They are our everyday heroes!
