espy is re-opening on May 14th!
We miss our clients. We miss being able to help Calgarians look good and feel even better. We miss connecting with our clients and hearing about their lives. We miss seeing everyone smiling and laughing in the store as we help them. Basically, we miss giving the espy experience. Thankfully, Albertans have done a great job with physical distancing and we have managed (for the most part) to get COVID-19 under control (go, us!). This means that espy will be re-opening on May 14th with the ability to keep our clients, staff, and community safe.
In order to ensure everyone feels safe while shopping, espy has the following Covid-19 update and re-opening plan in place until our public health officers allow measures to lessen.
Patience is Key for Re-Opening
As we all learn to live in this new world of physical distancing and sanitization, all of us at espy would like to remind Calgarians that one of the best things we can practice is patience. We are all in the same storm, but not necessarily in the same boat. Therefore, we ask that when you are out of your homes that you be patient with your fellow community members.
“Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting.” – Anonymous
With this in mind, when you are in the store we ask that you wait for other clients to move out of spaces before you enter them. espy staff will wait for clients to move before we grab pieces we are looking for. This will mean that shopping and styling will be a bit slower in order to keep everyone safe and maintain a 2M distance.
New Store Hours
espy will be permanently changing store hours when we re-open.
Monday – Saturday: 10:00am-6:00pm
Tuesday -CLOSED
Sunday:11:00am-4:00pm
(available for private shopping appointments outside of normal hours, https://espyexperience.com/personal-shopping-by-appointment/ to inquire)
We want to give options to our clients to find the best way to shop for them during the Covid-19 pandemic. We have implemented multiple ways to shop with espy.
- In-Store Shopping and Purchasing
- You come to espy and shop in-store with an espy stylist. Masks and hand sanitizer will be available and used by all staff and clients.
- In-Store Shopping w/Try-on at Home
- Come into the store and have an espy stylist help you choose outfits that you then take home to try on. Any items that don’t work can be returned!
- Virtual Shopping
- Contact the store and an espy stylist will work with you virtually to find the clothing and shoes you need. Then a contact-less pick-up/drop off will be arranged for you with easy returns on pieces that don’t work.
espy is a large 7000sf store. We are easily able to practice physical distancing within the store by limiting the number of people in the store to 30 or less (our usual capacity is over 200).
Here is how:
- Stickers on the floor throughout the store to help people remain 2M apart. We have ensured there is 2M between every change room.
- We will be working at 15% of the physical capacity allowed in-store, as well as limiting people to 30 in-store at any one time. We usually only have this many people in the store on Saturdays and recommend shopping on less busy days if you can.
- Private shopping appointments, when no other clients are in the store, are available to book when we are closed to the public on Sundays. This is also available Thursday and Friday evenings.
Trying on clothes and shoes is a bit tricky with all the safety measures in place. However, we are sure that we have come up with ways to keep everyone safe while you do so in-store.
- Clients must sanitize their hands before they try on clothes. Clients must also wear a face mask while trying on clothes. Masks will be provided if you do not have one of your own.
- When trying on footwear, every client will have to use a foot covering (that we will provide).
- If stylists need to be within 2M of a client, both the stylist and the client will be required to wear face masks and sanitize their hands.
Face masks are the new norm. We have them here at espy for both our clients and our staff. Masks will be worn whenever the client requests that they are worn, whenever staff is within 2M of a client, during all alteration pinnings, and while clients are trying on clothes.
We will have hand sanitizer available for client and staff use throughout the store, using the official World Health Organization formula. We will require sanitizer be used:
- By every client before entering the store
- By staff and clients before a staff member helps a client
- By clients, before they enter a change room to try on clothes or before they try on shoes
We want our clients to know that we have put their safety and the safety of the community first. We have gone above and beyond the recommended safety measures within the store. Here is our plan:
- Each changeroom will be sanitized with CAVI medical-grade wipes between each client
- Changerooms will be marked on the outside to indicate which ones have been sanitized and are ready for use
- All high-touch areas such as door handles (inside and out) will be sanitized hourly
- The front cash desk area will be sanitized hourly. Pin pads will be sanitized between every use
- Hand sanitizer will be available for use throughout the store at all times
For all alteration pinnings, both the client and espy staff member will be required to wear masks and sanitize their hands beforehand. Any alterations that come to us from outside of the store must be completely washed and will be quarantined for 48 hours before being worked on.
If you are feeling unwell, or are feeling any symptoms of COVID-19, please do not come shop with us. All of the employees at espy will be doing the same and will not be coming to work if they are ill.
We also ask that you do not come shop with us if you have been outside of the country within 14 days of you wanting to visit espy.
Fabric Transmission Concerns
Worldwide, there have been no known cases of COVID-19 being transmitted through clothing. At espy, we want to be sure it stays that way. We have implemented policies that go above and beyond the recommended safety protocols to address this.
- All clothing and shoes that are returned to the store from other environments will be quarantined for 48 hours before being returned to the floor
- Any moist clothing or shoes will be quarantined for 48 hours before being returned to the sales floor
Now that you know our Covid-19 update and re-opening plan to keep everyone safe, we cannot wait to see all your smiling faces again and help you get stylish for the summer. See you on May 14th!