Inside Oxford Street’s manic first day back – with 400-strong queues, ‘Covid safe’ tills and fist fights
IT was like the first day of the school holidays and the Boxing Day sales rolled into one.
London’s Oxford Street – which has seen off the Blitz and the Great Depression – lurched back into life with queues of eager shoppers forming outside major outlets before 9am.
Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates
Europe’s busiest shopping street – eerily quiet for months – was full of laughter and hubbub once more as non-essential shops opened for the first time since March.
Some bargain hunters allowed their excitement to get the better of them as they barged and shoved in a queue for Nike trainers as social distancing temporality went out the window.
It’s great to be able to go shopping again. Hopefully this will be a bit of a lift for people
Nurse Christina Doohan, 24
But for the most part, families – emerging from months of lockdown – observed safety rules as they could finally indulge in some much-needed retail therapy in blazing 23c sunshine.
Nurses Christina Doohan and Sarah Dillany, both 24, who work at Great Ormond Street Hospital, were laden with shopping bags.
“It’s great to be able to go shopping again,” said Christina. “Hopefully this will be a bit of a lift for people.”
Discount bonanza
First in the queue of around 60 people at Sports Direct’s flagship Oxford Street store was Michelle Gallagher, 46, from Angel, north London.
The Maternity Support Worker at Westminster and Chelsea Hospital told The Sun: “This is my first time out apart from work and going to the supermarket. You have to be careful and take the necessary precautions but it’s great to be able to go to the shops again.”
Michelle – who was wearing a protective mask – added: “We’ve been queuing since 8.40am because they’re doing 50 per cent discounts for NHS workers, so we’re hoping for some bargains.”
Her partner Elliot Batt, 47, added: “If there’s stuff I like, I’m going to buy it. Trainers, T-shirts, whatever.”
Next in the queue, students Lizzie Nsinba and Rena Morena, both 18, from Lambeth, south London, had already been to nearby Primark.
Rena explained: “It’s so good to be out shopping at last after so long in lockdown.”
The store has hand sanitiser stations, a one-way system, Perspex shielding at the tills and frequent cleaning of touch points.
Staff – who have a choice of wearing visors and masks – allow a maximum of 198 shoppers in at one time. Staff sterilise trainers that shoppers try on then don’t buy.
It’s so good to be out shopping at last after so long in lockdown
Student Rena Morena, 18
Footwear manager Rehad Ahmed, 34, said: “My wife Mahnaz is a vulnerable person with a heart condition but I feel very safe working here and have reassured her.
“The training I’ve received has been crystal clear and we’ve got all the PPE.”
General manager Dhiren Patel, 40, said: “We are 100 per cent confident we can deliver safe shopping.
“Shoppers are doing what we tell them and observing the new rules.”
‘Fist fights’ & 400-strong queues
Around the corner at Nike Town social distancing went awry as dozens of shoppers pushed and shoved to get to the front of the queue snaking up Regent Street before staff restored order.
An eyewitness told the Evening Standard: “It was mainly ‘lads’ pushing at the front. Shoving each other.
“There were some fists. There were maybe 400 people here in line before 10am.”
Long queues had formed with shoppers desperate to snap up limited edition Nike Air Jordan 1 High Zoom trainers, which can cost up to £400 and have sold out online.
Tom Jackson, 19, told MailOnline: “The problem is that people have been pushing in. We’ve seen a few people jump the queue at the front, which isn’t really fair. It’s been a bit chaotic to be honest. I’m not very impressed.”
Queuing to buy trainers, shopper Ricky Young, 38, was asked if he had expected the first shopping morning to be so busy.
“No, I actually thought people might have been sleeping or didn’t want to go out,” he revealed.
“But the doors are open again, it’s back to almost normal, back to business – but we just have to line up.”
The doors are open again, it’s back to almost normal, back to business – but we just have to line up
Shopper Ricky Young, 38
Nearby, Izzy Froude, 25, was busy marking out social distance spacing with plastic sticky strips on the pavement outside Urban Outfitters.
Izzy, the display coordinator for the store, said: “I was up here on Saturday and it was so quiet but today it’s been fairly busy . It’ll take time to get back to normal but today is very promising.”
The UK economy shrank by more than a fifth in the first full month of lockdown and shops are desperate to offload £15bn of unsold stock.
Top stories in news
Jace Tyrrell, chief executive at New West End Company, said there had been an “easing in” for shoppers.
The head of the partnership of 600 retail, restaurant, hotel and property owners in London’s West End said: “The businesses that have opened have a nice customer trade coming in, people are queuing, which is very good.
“Of course it is day one and we’ve got quite a few months of this ahead of us.”
He said the West End is expected to have 80 per cent fewer people than usual without hordes of tourists and shop workers.
Appealing to shoppers, he said: “You’ll never have the West End like it. So come out, don’t rush out, we’ve got weeks like this.”
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS - STAY IN THE KNOW
Don't miss the latest news and figures - and essential advice for you and your family.
To receive The Sun’s Coronavirus newsletter in your inbox every tea time, sign up here.
To follow us on Facebook, simply ‘Like’ our Coronavirus page.
Get Britain’s best-selling newspaper delivered to your smartphone or tablet each day – find out more.