The coronavirus outbreak has again put the extension of Sunday trading hours on the agenda and business secretary Alok Sharma has launched a review. Retail Week asks industry experts for their views.
Jonathan De Mello, executive director, retail consultancy, Harper Dennis Hobbs
“Given the situation regarding grocery provision due to the coronavirus lockdown, Sunday trading laws should be relaxed.
“A six-hour shopping window on a Sunday for stores larger than 3,000 sq ft is simply not sufficient in the context of queues outside supermarkets that snake around blocks and can last for hours, due to restrictions on the volume of shoppers that can be present in a store at any one time.
“It is simple economics – demand is currently far greater than available supply – and a relaxation of the laws would go some way towards alleviating this.
“Sunday is a busy day for grocery shopping given it is a non-working day for most, and queuing is a particular issue on Sundays as a result.
“More trading hours would dilute foot/car traffic as shoppers would have more flexibility about when they can shop. This would reduce queuing and also the associated risks of overcrowding on narrow pavements.
“The notion that online shopping makes an extension of Sunday trading hours irrelevant is ludicrous given a continued lack of available online delivery slots by the major grocers and even smaller chains – despite investment in additional delivery by the grocers.
“The vast majority of consumers are forced to shop in store as they simply cannot find available online delivery slots. This is likely to continue for many months until investment in additional online capacity starts to bear tangible fruit.
“The few that think relaxing Sunday trading hours in the current climate is not a good idea have a vested interest in saying so, and do not in my opinion have the best interests of the wider populace at heart. These include independent c-store operators, given potential impact on their Sunday trade, and some major grocers with extensive c-store portfolios.
“I support Morrisons’ defiance of current Sunday trading legislation by opening an hour early on Sunday to offer a shopping window to NHS staff, and I suspect the government will follow its example and make relaxation official following the review.”
Paddy Lillis, general secretary, Usdaw
“We believe that the long-held Sunday trading compromise is the right one. It allows customers to shop and stores to trade, and provides our members and other retail workers with guaranteed time away from work in what is an increasingly 24/7 society.
“We are facing a national crisis. Our members are on the front line of serving their communities and keeping the food supply chain moving.
“Shops are now coping much better than at the beginning of the coronavirus emergency, shoppers are adjusting and stores have put in effective safety measures.
“Any change to the Sunday trading regulations would be deeply controversial, not just with retail staff and those who campaign to keep Sunday special, but also with retailers.
“We do not believe there is a consensus among retail employers and some are absolutely opposed to large stores opening for longer.
“The retail sector is facing substantial long-term issues, with many businesses wondering if they can stay afloat, and undermining Sunday trading regulations is not the answer. The government should focus on the measures necessary to getting through this crisis and saving the high street, which was already facing difficulties before coronavirus.”
George MacDonald, executive editor, Retail Week
“If retailers want to open big stores on Sundays then they should be allowed to, although whether all might see the point is another matter.
“Consumers are already able to buy online 24/7, and smaller stores can trade longer hours on Sundays, so the rationale for restricting some shops’ opening hours on the basis of size makes no sense – particularly at present.
“Because people can shop online when they choose, in normal circumstances a few extra hours on a Sunday might add more to some big stores’ costs than to their bottom lines.
“But these aren’t normal times. The option to trade for longer on Sundays could help grocers more effectively manage the volume of footfall to supermarkets.
“And if, as looks likely, the coronavirus pandemic means longer-term changes to how stores trade to ensure social distancing and enable the other processes that might be required, extended hours might be useful for general merchandise retailers, too.
“Life has moved on since the relaxation of the rules in the 1990s. Retailers, should they wish, should be allowed to adapt, too.”
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