Watches of Switzerland Group to reopen all English stores today
The Watches of Switzerland Group has said that all of its Watches of Switzerland, Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths stores will be opening across England today.
The group has also reopened all of its Mayors showrooms in the US and Watches of Switzerland showrooms in Las Vegas.
All of the reopened stores are being made Covid-19 secure following the introduction of a number of coronavirus safety and social distancing measures.
While sneeze screens have been installed at consultation desks, gloves, protective masks and hand sanitiser will be provided for everyone who requires them.
In addition, shoppers will only be able to visit stores if they have a previously arranged appointment, although there will be a number of walk-in appointments available each day. Each store will also have a maximum occupancy level that will be decided according to the size of the showroom and the number of staff members available.
The group said the lockdown period has presented both challenges and opportunities. Its online business grew by 82.8% year-on-year in April and for the first time offered customers pieces from high-end brand partners such as Vacheron Constantin and Jaeger-LeCoultre.
Brian Duffy, Watches of Switzerland Group chief executive, said:“Our teams around the country have also been able to deepen their relationships with our VIP clients using tools such as Zoom to stay in touch, show product and arrange for watches to be delivered directly to them. We are confident that as we gradually reopen our network, we are well positioned to drive the business forward and emerge even stronger.”
Photo by Georgia Hawkins
