
May 4, 2020
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By Nidiane Martinelli, PhD
It’s been more than two months since America first came in contact with the invisible enemy of coronavirus, and finally, the stores are preparing to reopen soon. Despite our wishes to go back to normal — to life as it was before COVID-19 — that will only happen after a vaccine or effective treatment is adequately designed and approved.
For now, we will have “the new normal,” which will include many more steps to protect customers and employees. It doesn’t matter if you are a barbershop or restaurant owner; the concern for public safety is all the same. The US is preparing to open in roughly 3 different phases, which gradually will lift restrictions on what people can and cannot do.
The first phase is coming soon, hopefully — it’ll start when the number of cases of COVID-like and influenza-like syndromes has a downward trend for 14 days. It’s time to prepare the businesses to come back and serve the community. Employers must develop and implement appropriate policies regarding protective equipment, sanitation, disinfection of common areas, among other measures. Bear in mind, this will be a slow process, and it will take time to be fully back and running smoothly again.
All businesses that start to reopen must provide masks to their employers, and they should use them at all times. It is going to feel strange at the beginning to order something from someone using a mask; but we will adapt soon. Another possibility for restaurants with dine-in options — lock rows of tables in a way that it will always mean you’re six feet apart fro each other while dining. For restaurants, some jurisdictions have limited the number of patrons at 30-50% of the total capacity to avoid large gatherings. Restaurants will no doubt encourage family meals to be “to go” and wipe tables, menus, and chairs every time between one client and another.
Barbershops and salons are in great demand at these times as well — people are waiting to get nails done and haircuts for almost two months, and some are dying to have disasters fixed after their spouse’s attempt as barber or hairstylist. At these places, where employers and clients need to be in close contact, it is of the utmost importance to wear masks and gloves at all times. For salons and barbershops where chairs are usually less than six feet apart, the suggestion is to start with 30% of total capacity having two empty chairs between each client receive a treatment.
Retail stores could implement one-way-only direction shop inside the stores for customers, provide on-the-spot disinfection for shopping carts and put some marks on the floor every 6 feet to help customers to maintain a safe distance from one another. Other measures may include limiting the number of customers inside, allowing only people who are wearing masks to enter and check the temperature of clients before entering. Regarding trying on clothes, some retail stores may simply not allow it at these times. When accepting returns, the stores should clean the product with disinfecting products or avoid returns completely , if possible.
Independent of being a salon, barbershop, restaurant, or store, there are several ways to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The first thing would be to educate all personnel regarding the transmission of SARS-COv-2 and how to disinfect all areas. Here’s just a small list of actions that all business owners could adopt once the time to reopen comes:
Every place will face different challenges in reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic; above were just a few tips on how to enhance safety and keep vigilant through these times.
Business owners and workers must adhere strictly to increased safety and sanitation guidelines to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
For real estate business, the chant has always been “Location, location, location!!!” It is possible to adapt it for any business opening soon “Safety, safety, safety!!!”
Need to outfit your employees with professional-grade KN95s? Protect your customers with disposable surgeon masks? The/Studio is a responsibly-sourced, verified seller of protective personal equipment to international companies, family businesses, military groups and individuals. Place your order here.
References:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/openingamerica/#guidelines https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/community-mitigation-strategy.pdf https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3990.pdf https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/operations/states-given-guidelines-reopening-dining-rooms https://www.modernsalon.com/624102/28-safety-guidelines-for-reopening-salons-and-barbershops https://www.salontoday.com/download?id=623857&dl=1 https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/guidance-business-response.html https://restaurant.org/Downloads/PDFs/business/COVID19-Reopen-Guidance.pdf https://www.stoelrivesworldofemployment.com/2020/04/articles/covid-19/oregons-plan-for-reopening/