If the Apple Store near you is planning to reopen this week, it won’t be business as usual. Apple has implemented a series of guidelines to keep customers and employees safe as it navigates a world still reeling from the effects of the coronavirus.
First and foremost, Apple is requiring face coverings “for all of our teams and customers,” which will be provided if needed. Additionally, temperature checks will be conducted at the entrance and “posted health questions will screen for those with symptoms—like cough or fever—or who have had recent exposure to someone infected with COVID‑19.”
Apple will also be following social distancing guidelines, so the stores will be a lot less crowded than they usually are. Apple will be limiting occupancy and everybody lots of room, while adhering to strict “one‑on‑one, personalized service at the Genius Bar and throughout the store.”
For those who don’t want to enter the store, Apple will be expanding its store pick-up options to include curb‑side pick‑up and drop off. And finally, it will be “conducting enhanced deep cleanings that place special emphasis on all surfaces, display products, and highly trafficked areas.”
Apple has been taking a central role in the coronavirus pandemic, developing a screening app with Google and donating millions to support communities and health workers. Furthermore, Apple has sourced “more than 30 million masks and 10 million custom‑built face shields for doctors and nurses,” and partnered with health manufacturers to deploy “more than a million testing kits per week.”
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor
Michael Simon has been covering Apple since the iPod was the iWalk. His obsession with technology goes back to his first PC—the IBM Thinkpad with the lift-up keyboard for swapping out the drive. He's still waiting for that to come back in style tbh.