Retailers also see problems in measures
The number of customers that supermarkets can serve has fallen 70% after the government’s decision to reduce the maximum number of shoppers in a store at any given time, plus the weekend curfew from 6 p.m., according to a survey by the Research Institute of Retail Consumer Goods (IELKA).
Wednesday’s decision to extend the opening hours of food stores (including supermarkets) by half an hour in the evening is not expected to remedy the problem, especially for workers who only have time to go shopping on Saturdays.
The new limit of two hours per shopping trip, also announced on Wednesday, is expected to increase the likelihood of angry outbursts from queuing shoppers – with staff at the receiving end.
IELKA says that the average number of customers served per day up to January 17 was 1,196 people, with one person per 10 square meters. Since January 18 this figure has dropped to just 479 customers per day, as the maximum ratio allowed is one person per 25 sq.m. On Saturdays that has now dropped to just 319 customers per store, a measure that is going to apply in Attica until at least February 27.
