Sainsbury’s trials ‘relaxed’ shopping lanes

Sainsbury’s has introduced a relaxed shopping lane at its Prestwick store in a trial which will run for a month.

The shopping lane is for shoppers who take a little longer in the supermarket, allowing them to be slower than the regular customer. This measure is said to be potentially beneficial to customers who get stressed while shopping, including those who suffer from dementia.

The supermarket was the first retailer to trial the concept in 2016, when it ran a similar operation at its store in Gosforth. The positive feedback from the trial at Gosforth has resulted in the relaxed lane being a permanent proposition which still runs today.

A spokesperson for Sainsbury’s said: “Our aim is to be the most inclusive retailer and we want all of our customers to have a great shopping experience in our stores. There are many aspects of a visit to the supermarket which can be stressful for those with dementia, so by trialling a slow shopping option we hope we can make their lives easier.”