Westfield installs new signage in preparation for full reopening

Westfield has installed signage at its UK shopping centres in preparation for the reopening of Westfield London and Westfield Stratford on 15 June 2020.

The signage and barriers are part of robust plans in place announced for the full re-opening of its shopping centres as lockdown restrictions are relaxed.

The signage shows that regular shoppers will be separated from food collection services, such as Deliveroo and Uber Eats, as restaurants continue to operate as takeaway only.

Ten other Westfield centres across Europe will also be reopening following the partial closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Taking learnings from many of the Group’s centres across Europe, some of which have already started to reopen, preparations in the UK centres include people control measures to monitor the number of visitors in and out of the centres and socially distanced queuing systems and floor spacing.

Measures due to be implemented:

• Heightened hygiene and deep cleaning of all public spaces and hand sanitisers throughout the centres.
• The ability to manage the number of people entering the centres in a controlled and safely distanced manner using technology such as live footfall cameras and one-way systems where required.
• Use of indoor and outdoor screens to display key communication messages and floor stickers to mark social distancing spaces.
• Cashless car parks with social distancing parking as well as large numbers of bike racks and Santander bike docking stations.

Shop front June 2020: The future of retail?

Scott Parsons, Westfield’s Regional Managing Director, said in a statement last month: “The sheer scale of our centres puts us in a unique position where we can very safely manage the customer journey throughout the malls.

“We don’t underestimate the importance of getting these measures right, not only to ensure everyone coming into our centres is safe, but that they also feel confident that their wellbeing is genuinely being considered at every point."

Group CEO, Group CFO, and all members of the Group’s Senior Management Team took the initiative to reduce their pay by 25% for the period during which partial activity measures will be in place.