Lockdown - essential shopping?

It seems that this second lockdown is totally breaking down. In our town and yesterday, hight street cafes were open and serving inside despite only really being allowed to serve takeaways. Two mobile phone shops were open along with several other small traders making it that anyone out shopping could buy almost anything.

In work last night pubs in the local area that are open "via the back door" were being talked about and named. So, in my area, this is now a lockdown in name only and what that will do to the infection rate anyone can only guess at.

That said "I am working at present for the worlds largest online retailer in one of their huge distribution centres as what they call a shunter moving hgv vehicles on and off the loading docks. This week the centre has passed the highest throughput totals it has ever achieved with six weeks still to go until Christmas. We all received a letter of thanks on arrival for the night shift last night which did make us feel we are not undervalued by the management.

One thousand four hundred of us work at the centre with many more employees required which cannot be recruited. It would seem that many of the newly unemployed that are continuously moaning on tv do not wish to do manual work and get their hands dirty.

However, less said on that by me the better or my posts will be getting deleted.

I will wait for our local shops to open. Some are able to do click and collect by prior appointment but not many. I do not intend to give my money to the big boys unless I can’t get it locally.

There are far more shops open now than there were in the first lockdown.

Calendargirl

A sewing and crafts shop is open in our town. I’ve no objection to this personally, but essential - not really.

For many people, the ability of expressing themselves via their creativity is an extremely important part of maintaining their 'Mental Well-being'.

I knitted and crocheted my way throughout the first Lockdown - and was delighted when my local shop re-opened. It's now closed down again, so I'm back to having to buy via Online. It's not actually too much hassle, but it just means that I've got to wait about 4 days for the delivery.

In England it is perfectly permissable for shops to sell any other items they sell - so long as they also sell essential items. Cannot see the problem some seem to have with this - its exactly the same as the earlier lockdown that started in late March, at least so far as England is concerned. The Welsh approach appears to be pure idiocy and is attracting alot of criticism.

I think it’s all very confusing. I thought that garden centres were allowed to open as their stock of garden plants etc will deteriorate or die if not sold. Def not so for all the other things they sell. I suppose you could apply the same argument for barrels of beer! I don’t go to shops except food related or the chemist for medications. Haven’t done any other shopping since March that wasn’t online. Not ideal I know. Desperately trying to support small local businesses.

It is ridiculous on small businesses. Lovely young woman near me started up beauty shop. She has to close, despite all sanitising, only one client in at a time. Local dentist, opticians, open. Same covid safety, proximity to client.
I reckon they wanted to shut down pubs because 10pm curfew wasn’t working. And the small businesses are, as they say, collateral damage.

Message should say Taliya .

Sorry you lost your job must be a big worry for you .hope your circumstances change soon?

Justwokeup
so much of this doesn't make the slightest bit of sense
That's why people are doing their own thing ?

BoBo53, bike shops were open in the first lockdown for essential exercise. Apart from food, our local shops are only open for click and collect. Some of the smaller ones have not opened since March as they can't comply with social distancing requirements. That really is unfair on them and unfortunately it's likely they won't open again. The comments about the roads being full of traffic though is because people have been asked to go to work if they can't work at home. So it's okay for people to work but not to have any safe outlet to improve their mental health like swimming, sports groups or chats in the back garden? So much of this doesn't make the slightest bit of sense!

I had to return a badly damaged item delivered on behalf of Go outdoors and expected to have to queue outside. I was amazed it was open and people inside shopping as normal. I asked the girl handling my refund if it was because they sold fizzy drinks and sweets that they were deemed essential? Her answer was it’s because they sell bikes for exercise - how tenuous is that??

Sarnia + my friend had to get a new iron as his had just blown up and went to his Tesco where the electrical items were on the first floor - he was asked what he was looking for and was allowed to go.up and get an iron. They were stopping people simply browsing upstairs . There shouldn't be different rules in Tesco, each store should be working to the same rules, otherwise it's just ridiculous .

Books are food for the mind.

I agree that this is unfair to any clothes shops. In the first lockdown you could only buy food from M & S locally but that restriction was eased.before lockdown finished. The upper floor of my !ocal M & S is closed now but all the lower floor is open, for food and clothes. Primark and Debenhams are both shut - where's the logic?

“Books are important but hardly essential.”

For me they are.

The whole essential/non-essential argument reminds me of when VAT was introduced in 1973. At the time we owned a small deli selling as well as delivering hot and cold food and drinks. Any food item containing chocolate carried VAT because it was classed as non-essential, so coffee and tea were exempt, but hot chocolate wasn't. Likewise we could compare a slice of fruit cake with a chocolate eclair - one essential, the other a luxury. Absolute nonsense - like the situation now. The arbiter of essentiality/non-essentiality is some No 10 minion and we now all know that decisions that come out of No 10 are largely based on whims, and extremely questionable. One person's essential item is another person's non-essential item, and the only person to lose out apart from the consumer seems to be the small business owner.

Shoe shops need to be open for children’s shoes only. During the last lockdown both my DGCs grew out of their shoes. Fortunately someone kind gave my daughter two pairs of trainers but these were their only wearable shoes.

In my book alcohol, sweets and cakes are not an essential items, nor are clothes for adults. Anything needed for work such as tools are essential for some.

Greenfinch Waterstones - sorry I do not agree with you regarding books. They are certainly essential to my life and always have been. Furthermore, people living alone will probably enjoy having something interesting to read. I am shielding, and together with friends in the same position, find reading and the radio an uplifting pleasure.

There have been adverts on the TV since the current lockdown (I tend to record so I seldom see them) from the Government, banks and the internet providers. Encouraging small business people to sign up for Click and Collect.
I looked it up and it seems they have banded together to help people set up online shopping and banking facilites.
DGS and I went along our shopping street today and nearly all the shops are advertising it.
There are set times for collection and you need an appointment.
The shops all had lights on and staff on duty.
I am really pleased as DGS main pressies are coming from 2 of the shops.
A good initiative I think; our lock down is until mid December and St Nicolas arrives on the 6th.
Back to school on Monday so I can get organised.

Myself and dh went to the local shops and was dumfounded to see only charity shops/card shops shut.
So much for lockdown2 and social distancing.

All the banks and post offices ect are still open and people are still taking money out which I would suspect is more unsanitary than any book given the amount of hands it has passed through ?

My local Tesco has the first floor closed off. A lady was asking why as she needed a kettle and she felt that was an essential item. The reply was that if the store was all on one level she could buy a kettle but Tesco could only open up the ground floor to shoppers. Barmy!

We have a huge ‘garden centre’ not far away. Apart from plants
it has huge Christmas displays of trees, decorations and gifts. There is also a large food hall. In addition they have a lot of separate independent outlets selling kitchenware, childrens’ clothes, craft materials, activity wear and ladies’ clothes. Everything is open, apart from the cafe! I’ve been told that the queues to get in extend for at least 100 metres.
Meanwhile all our little local shops are forced to close, and the big online business named after a river is laughing all the way to the (tax-free) bank!

I may be wrong but perhaps small shop owners can claim furlough for their staff and/or other benefits for themselves, whereas large supermarkets can't even if half of the store has to be roped off.
Happy to be corrected if I'm wrong.