Grocery Shopping Etiquettes During COVID Pandemic

It has been over a year since the coronavirus pandemic turned our lives upside down. Life as we knew it will probably never be the same. Masks and sanitizers replaced all our previous must-haves and social distancing replaced all our social etiquettes. As soon as countries announced a complete lockdown with only essential services to remain open, chaos took over grocery stores. People started hoarding food and daily items like toilet paper. Some stores in the US and other countries even saw shoppers fight with each other to get their hands on the last unit of toilet paper or soup. This pandemic and the loss it caused worldwide were unprecedented. But we had to adapt. 

As life starts to get back to normal and we have COVID vaccines, we must still take precautions and be safe - for ourselves and for others too. Even though most businesses, including grocery stores, are back in business, we can’t forget that we are still in the middle of the pandemic. Our lives and those of our loved ones are still at risk and to avoid any mishappenings, it’s important to still follow guidelines that we were told to follow a year ago. 

We at New Indian Supermarket are taking all the precautions to keep our employees and our customers safe, and we hope that when you do visit our store, you adhere to all the safety guidelines too. In case you are still not sure about entering a supermarket, then we also provide a curbside pickup service, wherein you can simply call us, place an order and we will pack your groceries and leave them right outside our store. You can then pick up your order without having to make contact with anyone else. 

We care about our customers’ safety and therefore, below are a few things you should keep in mind as you step out of your home for grocery shopping.

• Wear a mask. Double up if possible
• Go during hours when fewer people will be there (for example, early morning or late night)
• Clean your hands with a sanitizer before you enter the store
• Disinfect the shopping cart, use disinfecting wipes if available
• If you normally bring your own reusable shopping bags, ensure they are cleaned before each use
• Use marked entry or exit points and follow any directional signs or floor markings 
• Maintain at least a 1 metre/6 feet distance from others
• Try not to touch too many things
• Cover a cough or sneeze in your bent elbow or tissue
• If possible, use touchless payment (pay without touching money, a card, or a keypad). If you must handle money, a card, or use a keypad, use hand sanitizer right after paying
• Once home, wash your hands thoroughly 
• Thoroughly wash all the items you have bought - especially fruits and vegetables