As Cyclone Alfred and heavy rainfall continues to threaten Queensland and Northern New South Wales, retailers have put preparations in place to ensure the safety of their teams, customers and stores.
The intensity of the weather event has meant that many stores in affected areas are now closed until conditions change and it is safe to reopen.
Where it is safe to do so, some essential retail stores remain open though many retailers are reporting lower staff numbers given the warnings currently in place.
The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and National Retail Association (NRA) are calling on continued community patience and understanding towards retail workers who are operating in an extremely high-pressure situation.
“Our hearts go out to all Australians affected by this extreme weather event. Retailers and their teams are on the frontlines of this crisis and are intensely focused on supporting the community at this critical time,” said ARA Chief Industry Affairs Officer Fleur Brown.
“We are grateful for the enormous effort from essential retailers in particular. This includes the delivery of extra supplies across the past week, as well as efforts to maintain the operations of as many stores as possible and support SES activities and evacuation centres.”
NRA Interim CEO Lindsay Carroll said: “It’s worth remembering that retail teams also live in these affected communities and the person serving you in a store is likely to be personally impacted by the Cyclone and flooding.
“We are calling for patience and understanding at this time and respect towards retail teams as they do their best to offer essential services.”
