// The Entertainer to reopen 173 of its stores with new “ready in 10” fast track service
// Stores will reopen June 15 as per government’s guidance
The Entertainer is set to reopen 173 of its stores on June 15 as per the government’s guidelines on lockdown restrictions being eased on non-essential retailers.
The toy retailer, which has been trading online only since late March, said its re-opened stores would have social distancing measures in place, including a new “ready in 10” fast-track service concept.
The new service allows queuing shoppers to make an order from their phone to collect in-store within 10 minutes, or be fast-tracked to the cash register after telling door staff what they want.
READ MORE: Non-essential retailers to reopen from June 15, government says
The Entertainer was among a long list of retailers that took the initiative to close its stores just days before the government’s nationwide lockdown was implemented on March 24.
During the lockdown period, the retailer’s online operations reportedly experienced levels of demand that rivalled the Black Friday period.
However, it struggled to keep up with orders as warehouses were at 40 per cent capacity due to social distancing restrictions.
The Entertainer chief executive Gary Grant said he “needed to get the business back on track” and expressed frustration that the initial tentative lockdown easing date, June 1, had been delayed to June 15.
“Our objective is to satisfy all of our customers to achieve all they want in the fastest possible time that we can serve them,” he said.
“Having the fast-track will actually allow us to serve more people an hour than we would ordinarily be restricted to with social distancing measures and saves customers from having to wander around the store.”
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