Holiday Rush: Retail Cleaning Tips in Time for Black Friday
Shoppers are making their list, checking it twice and deciding if they should shop on-line this holiday season or got to an actual brick-and-mortar store. Last year, Fortune Magazine reports that on the whole, retail spending rose 3.6% in November and December. True, most of that spending took place on-line, but in-store sales rose too.
Consumers still want to see, touch and feel products and clicking a mouse holds little holiday cache. Neither does a dirty store. Attract shoppers with these retail cleaning tips in time for Black Friday.
Let it Snow…Outside
Holiday shopping is usually accompanied by snowy weather. You’ll want to keep that snow and the residual, tracked in road salt out of the store. Snow melts into puddles that create dangerous slip-and-fall hazards while road salts will damage flooring surfaces.
Install an entry-way mat system to trap snow and salt before it gets in. At least 15 feet of matting is recommended to do the job. Vacuum mats during slow periods to remove abrasive grit and change them once they are saturated. During nightly cleaning pay special attention to entry floors, windows and displays to draw fickle shoppers in.
Shopping is More than Spending Money
A 2013 study conducted by retail strategy firm WD Partners found that people valued the human connection of shopping in person. Going to a brick-and-mortar store during the holidays delivers that chance to spend time with family and friends, have a meal, marvel at the decorations and maybe sit on Santa’s lap. But spending time away from home inevitably leads to using a public restroom.
A dirty restroom definitely lands on the naughty list. Make sure yours is safe, clean and inviting by bumping up the maintenance schedule as needed. Staff should restock supplies hourly and clean touchpoints like flushers, faucet taps, soap dispensers and door pulls. This will keep the facility inviting during business hours and make nightly cleaning easier.
Floor Your Customers
Busy aisles are great for the bottom line but extra shoppers mean extra mess, particularly when there are accidents. Spills require staff’s immediate attention as a slippery, wet floor is a hazard. Cordon off the area around the spill before cleaning and don’t remove the wet floor sign until the space is completely dry. An AutoVac is a great tool for this task as it completely removes the spill and dries the floor as it goes.
After hours, the same tool can be used to clean the whole floor quickly and efficiently.
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Amy Milshtein
Amy Milshtein covers design, facility management and business topics for a variety of trade publications and consumer magazines.
Her work has won several awards, most recently a regional silver Azbee Award of Excellence.
She lives in Portland, OR with her family and Clyde, a 15-lb tabby cat. Once an avid hiker, these days she finds herself on the less-challenging -but-still-exciting 'creaky knees' trails.