NEWS

Toy stores introduce click and collect facility as stores ready for reopening

Published on: 18th May 2020

Both The Entertainer and Smyths look forward to welcoming back customers, including at a new Entertainer flagship Birmingham store.

Having traded online throughout the lockdown, the Entertainer has now opened 89 locations for click and collect orders. The company says that the click and collect service involves zero contact, and customers will not be able to browse, buy additional products or process refunds and exchanges.

Orders placed will be ready to collect in 30 minutes if stock is already in store, or in two working days if the stock needs to be delivered from the Entertainer warehouse. Stores will be open for collections each day except on Wednesdays and Sundays. Customers are advised to be prepared to phone the store on arrival to be attended to and must queue at least two metres apart if there is a queue. Store staff will open the door and put the order on the floor for customers to pick up, and no signature will be required, enabling staff and customers to stay safely separated

A full list of the branches which offer this service is available here.

The Entertainer is hoping to have its first shops open again on or around 1st June, once the government has given the go-ahead. The team has been working hard over the last few months to introduce contactless payment and service to all stores and to put in place the best ways to ensure social distancing, with till guards, hand sanitiser and further protective measures. Staff retraining will still need to take place in order to introduce the new procedures, to ensure that customers receive as warm a welcome as they did before, all while keeping the public and staff members as safe as possible.

It is hoped that the new Birmingham Bullring store will also be able to open on 15th June. The 10,000 sq. ft store has recently undergone a £1m transformation but has not yet been able to launch due to the lockdown. In the new store, children will have to stay with their parents and won’t be able to handle product, and a new play area will also be off limits for now.

Smyths Toys has also announced the reopening of stores for customers to click and collect. The service is available in all but five stores; customers can buy products online before 3pm and collect them the same day. Only customers with a ‘Ready for Collection’ email are granted access the stores and anyone else will be refused entry. Click & Collect points have been positioned at the front door and customers are asked to queue at the designated points outside the store, respecting social distancing at least two metres apart from other shoppers. Refunds and exchanges or additional sales at the stores are not available. Full details are available here.

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