Costcutter expands range of coronavirus guidance and support

• All materials are free for independent retailers to download from its dedicated website

• The online support packages include point-of-sale materials and a guide to implementing social distancing in store

Costcutter Supermarkets Group (CSG) has expanded its range of support materials and guidance for its retailers to help keep shoppers and staff safe during the Covid-19 crisis.

All materials are available free for independent retailers by downloading from its dedicated website at freshstart.costcutter.co.uk.

The online support package includes a guide to implementing social distancing in store, point-of-sale materials and the stories of individual Costcutter retailers sharing their experience of serving local communities during the outbreak.

“We continue to be inspired by our retailers, many of whom are going that extra mile to support their local communities with home delivery and call & collect services for their most vulnerable customers and key workers,” said Jamie Davison, CSG business development director of new business.

“Our role is to ensure they have the resources and support they need to support their local communities during these challenging times. We also wanted to share some of the resources and support we have developed with the wider retailer community. At CSG our purpose is to help independent retailers thrive and the wide range of support we provide is central to this.”

Dave Wyatt, a store manager at Crawley Down Costcutter and Shell garage, added he had received “amazing” feedback for its in-store safety measures and social media guidance.

“Not only do our shoppers tell us they feel safer, but we are also seeing new shoppers come to our store because they have heard about the enhanced safety measures we’ve put in place,” he said.

The shop’s Facebook page also keeps the local community up to date with when stock is arriving, as well as providing details about the in-store safety measures. Shoppers can also contact the store team to arrange delivery for vulnerable customers.

“We’ve worked hard to maintain high levels of stock to ensure our shoppers have access to the food they need throughout this crisis and have seen daily sales triple, and largely from new customers,” Wyatt said.

“We’ve also ensured that outside our opening hours of 5am to 9pm, the store is open for NHS, care workers and emergency services to refuel throughout the night should they need it. Nothing my team has been experiencing compares to the tireless and selfless work that our NHS and emergency services are doing, and I’m delighted to be able to give something back.”