More and more stores, shops and essential establishments around the world offer offering special senior shopping hours. It started during COVID-19. Find help is this blog post focused on senior shopping. These recommendations apply anytime, regardless of coronavirus or not.
Learn easy ways to make shopping senior-friendly. Watch a short (~11 minutes) FREE presentation on how to adopt special senior shopping hours. Additionally, read the presentation in a downloadable PDF. These resources are yours to watch and download with no email sign-up necessary!
Quick and easy things to consider:
- Offer special shopping hours for seniors and people with disabilities.
- Add a morning time.
- Add a time later in the day. Because seniors and people with disabilities may struggle in the morning.
- Include people with a mobility disability or a hidden disability.
- Limit the number of people allowed in the store.
- Provide wheelchairs and electric shopping carts.
- Clean and sanitize each wheelchair and shopping cart after each use.
- Color code shopping carts with a washable tag.
- Make available at the entrance with a greeter.
- Green tag: I want assistance.
- Red tag: I do not want assistance.
- Have extra staff on duty to offer assistance.
- Adjust the lighting in the store.
- Ensure that there is good lighting but eliminate moving, shining or shimmering lights.
- Turn noise down or off and eliminate all background music.
- Older adults are more likely to have hearing loss.
- Additionally, hearing aids do not solve all hearing loss issues.
- Reduce the overall noise level; turn turning off unnecessary and noisy equipment.
- Reduce clutter in the aisles. Remove extra and unnecessary displays.
- Help with physical distancing. Mark spots on the floor to provide a visual cue for people to stand apart.
- Offer sturdy chairs, both with and without arms.
- Chose open spaces so they are not a hazard to navigate around.
- Add them where sit and wait for a spouse or caregiver who accompanies them as they get the car.
- Add them at intervals in store, especially if your store is large.
- Keep pathways and aisles clear and free throughout the store.
- Install cane holders at cash registers.
- Offer help to load purchases into the car.
- Avoid collecting all the carts during special hours to reduce noise.
- But keep the area safe.
- Clean and sanitize!
- Knowledge is key!
- Tell people what changes you make.
- Share online.
- Add signs in store.
- Make special shopping hours ongoing.
Add sensory-friendly shopping hours to include to seniors and people with a hidden disability. Did you know that up to a third of the population looks for sensory-friendly experiences in everyday living? Being sensory-friendly is being senior-friendly and vice versa!
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