ASHLAND, Ore. — “It’s great to see people again and let them know we’re here and ready to go,” said Catherine Wallner, owner of ‘Patina Soul’ in Ashland.
Friday, May 15th is the start of the ’new normal’ for many local retailers.
“It’s been very stressful to be closed for two months… no doubt about that,” she said.
Wallner says they’ve installed plexi-glass over the front counter and are sanitizing everything.
That’s especially true when it comes to fitting rooms.
“As long as they have a mask on we are letting people try on,” she said. “We go into the fitting room after they’ve been in there and wipe down the mirror and any hard surfaces.”
A couple streets over at ‘Rogue Valley Runners,’ manager Brett Hornig says they’re taking extra precautions when working with customers.
“All the employees are wearing masks [and] gloves when fitting the customers for shoes,” he said.
They’ve also installed a glass cough and sneeze shield over the counter and are limiting the number of people in the store.
“The number of, I guess, parties in the store… two or three. And we’ve also sectioned off parts of our store for fitting people with the appropriate social distancing measures,” Hornig said.
Both stores say customers are slowly starting to roll in. But they understand adjusting to the new rules will take time.
“We’re just anxious to get back open and let people shop,” said Wallner.
“I think it will be a little while before things are really up and rolling again but it’s nice to just get started with that,” said Hornig
To see if a retailer is open near you, it’s best to check out their website or Facebook page for the latest updates.
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