Ikea shoppers queue for four hours to buy flatpack furniture as 19 stores are reopened
Thousands of people queued in the heat for hours today after 19 Ikea stores reopened across England and Northern Ireland.
Only 10 customers were allowed in at a time, and only one adult and one child from each household was permitted to enter. In some areas, car parks were forced to close to help ease the pressure on staff and they turned into massive queuing areas.
In Tottenham, North London, shoppers began arriving hours before the 10am opening time, with some waiting for nearly four hours before they were finally allowed inside the store. Social distancing ‘wardens’ wearing masks patrolled the area, to make sure people were following the one-way system and keeping two metres apart.
Customer Jack Parkes, 33, from Edmonton, said he queued for two hours before buying a dressing table and some mirrors for his daughter’s room. He continued: ‘People will probably think I’m mad for bothering, but to be honest it’s another reason to leave the house after being told to stay inside for so long.’
He added that the store had been a ‘clean and safe environment for people to shop in’.
In Belfast, shoppers Samantha Fisher and her daughter Atlanta, from Groomsport, near Bangor, queued from 8am in order to furnish a bedroom which had lain empty for weeks during the coronavirus lockdown. In Warrington, customers began arriving at 5.40am before the store opened at 9am.
Prior to reopening, Ikea bosses warned that current social distancing measures must be obeyed inside their stores and asked that shoppers ‘come prepared with ready-made lists and own bags’.
Those ‘purely wishing to browse’ were also advised to visit the stores in the ‘coming weeks’ in bid to shorten lengthy waiting times.
Play areas and restaurants are not yet open again to the public, but the company’s infamous meatballs can be bought to cook at home.
Click and collect facilities are also opening in a phased approach in line with government guidelines, with Ikea saying this will depend on which UK region stores are in.
Extra hand sanitiser and more deep cleans of bags, trolleys, bathrooms, equipment and touchscreens will take place, while cash will not be accepted at any tills.
Customers should also avoid travelling to stores just to process refunds, as the company has a 365-day returns policy.
An Ikea spokesperson said: ‘The health and safety of our customers and co-workers remains our top priority, which is why we put extensive and enhanced measures in place to create a safe and comfortable experience.’
In Tottenham, North London, shoppers began arriving hours before the 10am opening time, with some waiting for nearly four hours before they were finally allowed inside the store. Social distancing ‘wardens’ wearing masks patrolled the area, to make sure people were following the one-way system and keeping two metres apart.
Customer Jack Parkes, 33, from Edmonton, said he queued for two hours before buying a dressing table and some mirrors for his daughter’s room. He continued: ‘People will probably think I’m mad for bothering, but to be honest it’s another reason to leave the house after being told to stay inside for so long.’
He added that the store had been a ‘clean and safe environment for people to shop in’.
In Belfast, shoppers Samantha Fisher and her daughter Atlanta, from Groomsport, near Bangor, queued from 8am in order to furnish a bedroom which had lain empty for weeks during the coronavirus lockdown. In Warrington, customers began arriving at 5.40am before the store opened at 9am.
Prior to reopening, Ikea bosses warned that current social distancing measures must be obeyed inside their stores and asked that shoppers ‘come prepared with ready-made lists and own bags’.
Those ‘purely wishing to browse’ were also advised to visit the stores in the ‘coming weeks’ in bid to shorten lengthy waiting times.
Play areas and restaurants are not yet open again to the public, but the company’s infamous meatballs can be bought to cook at home.
Click and collect facilities are also opening in a phased approach in line with government guidelines, with Ikea saying this will depend on which UK region stores are in.
Extra hand sanitiser and more deep cleans of bags, trolleys, bathrooms, equipment and touchscreens will take place, while cash will not be accepted at any tills.
Customers should also avoid travelling to stores just to process refunds, as the company has a 365-day returns policy.
An Ikea spokesperson said: ‘The health and safety of our customers and co-workers remains our top priority, which is why we put extensive and enhanced measures in place to create a safe and comfortable experience.’