We all know that ECQ will be lifted soon in the Metro. With that, most establishments will resume their operations and would adjust to the “new normal” of safety measures to prevent the spreading of COVID-19.
One of the local businesses that is slowly re-opening their doors is Bo’s Coffee, the beloved Philippine-homegrown coffee chain. While the brand continues to serve through delivery and pick-up from few select locations, Bo’s Coffee is also preparing to slowly reopen their stores to the public with extra safety and sanitary measures to ensure that their customers are in good hands. The safety and health of customers, s remain the top priority at Bo’s Coffee.
“As the post COVID-19 new normal, things will be very different with our stores now putting more emphasis on providing a safe and sanitary experience to both customers and team members, but the one thing that will be the same is we will strive to provide our customers the best Philippine Coffee experience whether in the comfort of their homes or in our stores,” Bo’s Coffee chief executive officer Steve D. Benitez said.
Here are the things Bo’s Coffee is currently doing to ensure the safety and sanitation of their stores for their customers and its store teams:
Sanitation Stations
Among its current efforts are providing sanitation stations which includes foot baths or sanitation mats that will be used by customers and team members to sanitize their shoes before entering the store, an automatic hand sanitizer dispenser at the entrance of the store, hand sanitizers at the cashier and bar areas, and temperature checks by the store team member or security personnel.
Air Quality
Air conditioning units and air vents will be thoroughly sanitized and cleaned at least once a week to make sure there is minimal chance of air contamination.
Store team members are also required to wear face masks at all times.
Social Distancing
Initially, most stores will be open only for entryway service, delivery, pick-up, take-out and curbside pick-up. Stores that will be open for dine-in service will have their seating capacity lessen by half to maintain social distancing.
There will be markers on the floor to indicate proper distance between customers who are in line to order.
Contactless Transactions
Contactless service is also being strictly implemented during this time and customers are strongly encouraged to use Bo’s Coffee Order Ahead via Messenger platform for seamless ordering and cashless payment.
Online ordering and delivery is also available through their delivery partners FoodPanda, LalaFood, and soon GrabFood.
All electronic payments are accepted at Bo’s Coffee and for credit card payments, customers will be asked to personally slot in their credit card in the terminal. Meanhwhile, there will be cash trays provided for cash transactions to avoid direct contact.
While Bo’s Coffee has strongly supported the movement on reducing single-use plastic, the safety of customers is now of higher importance and points of contact are minimized with the use of disposable packaging and non-use of ceramic wares and personal tumblers.
Condiments will be removed from the condiments station to minimize handling by multiple people and will be given by the barista together with the beverage order.
Health and Safety of Team Members
Aside from their customers, the company also highly prioritizes the safety and health of their employees.
Some of the measures being implemented are daily body temperature checks of each store personnel at the start of each shift, clothes and shoes sanitation of each employee upon arrival at the store, personal protective equipment such as face masks, face shields and gloves are to be worn by each team member at all times, and a foot bath/sanitation mat will be provided for them, among other things.
Sanitation Strategy
Before store reopening, team members will undergo online training on new and updated safety, cleaning and sanitation procedures.
Team members are also required to follow strict cleaning and sanitation procedures during pre-opening and post-closing of the store. While in operation, all points of contact and areas touched by customers and team members will be cleaned and sanitized regularly.
Since the washroom is considered a hotspot, it will be kept locked, but customers will be advised to ask the store team member to open it—should they need to use it—and will be sanitized after every use.
The re-opening of Bo’s Coffee stores will be based on the national government’s guidelines on which areas are under ECQ or GCQ. However, at the top of mind is the consideration for team members’ accessibility and safety as well as customer needs.
