05/11/2020 - 17:12
- Clarín.com
- Society
A slight relief came for some City merchants in the midst of the coronavirus quarantine. It is that as announced by the head of the Buenos Aires Government, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, certain items may raise their blinds and serve the public from this Tuesday 12 and Thursday 14, with a reduced schedule from 11 to 21 hours and depending on the last number of the DNI of each client. Clarín made a tour to find out how they are preparing.
The new easing measure for the City, which is still in phase 3 of the quarantine, will partially reactivate the activity . Even days will be for buyers whose document ends in an even number; odd days, meanwhile, for citizens who have an odd number at the end of their ID.
In turn, it was determined that a consumer can enter every 15 square meters and that employees cannot travel to their jobs by public transport.
Among the activities that reopen on Tuesday the 12th are bookstores, toy stores, flower shops, perfume shops, decoration, electrical materials, electrical appliances, musical instruments and bicycle shops. On Thursday the 14th , meanwhile, it will be the turn of jewelers, watches, bijouterie, furniture stores, car and motorcycle dealers, and the rest of retail stores except clothing and footwear.
How do you expect to return to activity? Here are six stories of Buenos Aires merchants preparing with gel alcohol, chinstraps and distance rules, but also among fears of how their employees will be able to travel and become victims of robberies.
Furniture stores
In Ezequiel Giannini's furniture store there is a gel alcohol dispenser for customers and an alcohol sprayer to disinfect.
At Métrica Amoblamientos, located in Belgrano in 2000, in Balvanera, Ezequiel Giannini (35) is ready for the long-awaited opening . "We have a gel alcohol dispenser for when people enter. We are going to have the sprayer with water and alcohol for the handle, because the door is going to be closed. We are going to be in the chinstrap , the client is going to ask that also use it and they are going to enter of a person ", counted.
And he added: "We are looking at how to disinfect mattresses, because people are going to come and touch it, go to bed. Because although the issue of hand washing is clear, the issue of clothing is not so much . There will also be a rag with bleach for the floor. "
Fortunately, he and the other shop owner are very networked and people don't go to business. For this reason, while Ezequiel attends the premises, his partner will coordinate deliveries from the warehouse .
Jewelers
José Luis Rossi has a jewelry and watch shop. You are concerned with how your employees will be moved.
The entire hygiene protocol is clear and they know how to carry it out, but Jose Luis Rossi (66), from JLR Rossi, a jewelry and watchmaker from Libertad to 300, has another concern: the transfer of his employees . "We are going to open on Thursday. The problem is not the owners, but how the 10 employees will travel. We have three stores. I can open one, but they are in charge of opening the other two," he explains.
He had the idea of offering them by car - they all live in the Province - but "they are waiting for permits" to be able to move.
In turn, he expressed his fear of having to close due to the tough economic moment in which he is immersed. "I was thinking about it and I am also looking at opening myself to another item, because it is complicated. Today we came to make the payments and no more, to avoid fines. We have not paid rents," he added.
Musical instruments
Edgardo Müller has a house for musical instruments. He believes that due to the type of business, he will have no problem respecting the guidelines for distancing himself from clients.
Edgardo Müller (50) has a business dedicated to the sale of musical instruments and computer items (Digisolutions, in Talcahuano at 200). To date, he has been delivering orders with his vehicle.
"We are going to try to resume normal activity on Tuesday from 11 to 17, taking turns, respecting the rules of hygiene and distance. We already have a reserve of alcohol in gel. But above all, in our stores customers do not usually overlap, then we can serve them individually, keeping their distances, "he said.
"This is an SME and only two people work. We come in our own vehicle. The fact of being able to open is a relief, because it is a very hard time and more for small and medium-sized companies, which manage limited resources," he said.
Toy shops
Nicolás Arboyan has a toy store in Once. For fear of theft, he does not know if it will open or not.
Toy stores are another item that may reopen. Nicolás Arboyan (37), from Yani Toys, a 25-year-old soft toy exporter and manufacturer, from Larrea to 200, spoke to Clarín from the local sidewalk. Whether or not it opens is still in doubt. "In principle the idea is to open, but security is an important issue here," he started.
"If there is a large circulation in which I generate sales, it is fantastic. But raising the blind so that people can come in and steal from us does not seem to me. Here at Once when three stores open and the rest are closed, it is no man's land " he counted.
What are the preparations to keep the blinds up? "Floor cloth with bleach as a first step to keep the virus from moving inside, all with a chinstrap and four gel alcohol dispensers so people can clean their hands anytime they need to," Arboyan said.
Finally, he concluded: "This is going to be day by day. To open, sell 3,000 pesos and have one come and steal from you, I prefer not to. Another option is to attend in turn, with the sliding door closed. I do not consider it to be a great counter sale where people come by and want to buy something. "
Bookstores
Juan Adrián Venturoli (39), from the Gandhi bookstore, was finalizing this Monday the details for the reopening.
The branch of the Gandhi bookstore, in Corrientes and Rodríguez Peña, had a low blind but an open door. And there is Juan Adrián Venturoli (39), finishing preparing everything for the long-awaited day. "Now we have come to clean and accommodate all things. We are disinfecting all the boxes and the items due to the reopening. Every book that comes in or comes out will be sprayed with alcohol and water, " he said.
The hours of operation will be from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and four people will attend the premises: two in the morning and two in the afternoon. "One of the two of us will be at the door, putting gel alcohol on each client who enters with a mandatory mask or mask, and the other will be in the box. Because of the physical space we have, they will be able to enter two people, "he added.
Home appliances
Fabián Cantero (53) works in an electrical appliance house, which customers will only be able to access up to the line of the window.
The same postcard with low blinds delivered the premises of Fabián Cantero (53), from Comercial Mayor, in Sarmiento to 2300. In his shop, which is dedicated to the sale of household appliances, he knows that the public will not be allowed to enter .
"We are going to attend in the first meters from the window," he said. And he referred to how they were preparing: "We have alcohol in gel to offer them and we are putting up posters for people to enter one person at a time, highlighting the people who can enter by document number."
