As the prime minister hinges the relaxation of the latest lockdown on the most vulnerable in society receiving a vaccine, what efforts are retailers making to hasten the process?

Asda

The grocery giant became the first supermarket to offer in-store Covid vaccinations from the week commencing January 25. 

The retailer said the vaccinations would be provided by trained pharmacy staff at its Birmingham superstore, focusing on immunising priority groups identified by the NHS. 

The store’s George department will be transformed into a space to administer the vaccine between 8am and 8pm, seven days a week and Asda said once up and running the store would be able to offer 250 jabs a day. 

Asda said it would continue to work with the NHS to see if any of its other stores could be used to support the nationwide vaccination programme. 

Chief executive Roger Burnley said: 

“We are incredibly proud to provide this service and are keen to do all we can to help the NHS and Government accelerate the rollout of the vaccination programme.

“We have an extensive nationwide logistics network that could support the storage and distribution of the vaccine and our highly-trained pharmacy colleagues are experienced in delivering large vaccination programmes, having recently provided nearly 200,000 flu jabs to members of the public. We are on hand to provide the NHS with any practical support required so that more people can quickly receive the vaccine.”

Bensons for Beds

The homewares specialist, which currently has the majority of its store estate closed as a ‘non-essential’ retailer, has written to the UK government, as well as the devolved governments in Scotland and Wales, to offer its large-format stores up as vaccine centres to aid with the effort. 

Chief operating officer Joe Wykes said: “While these are difficult circumstances for so-called non-essential retailers, we’re working hard to maintain our operations for customers who need us.

“But while we’re disappointed to close all our stores once more, we think they could be put to good use.

“That’s why we’ve today asked the government to consider local Bensons stores as vaccination centres should the need arise.” 

Boots 

Boots is setting up Covid-19 vaccination sites at three locations in Gloucester, Huddersfield and Halifax, which will become operational later this month, with further sites potentially added at a later date.

“We stand ready to do much more and our national network of pharmacy expertise is prepped to support the NHS and the government to accelerate the rollout of the vaccine”

A spokesperson for the retailer said: “Boots has extensive knowledge and experience of mass vaccination (having completed over a million flu vaccinations last year, for example) and we have developed a model for Covid-19 vaccination that is aligned with our exceptional safety, clinical and operational standards.”

“We stand ready to do much more and our national network of pharmacy expertise is prepped to support the NHS and the government to accelerate the rollout of the vaccine.”

Brewdog

Brewdog co-founder James Watt has offered space in the pub chain’s premises to store and administer the Covid-19 vaccine and says it is now in talks with the government about putting this into action.

In a tweet, Watt said: “We have waiting areas, huge refrigerators and ace people who can help organise.”

 

Iceland 

Iceland has extended an offer to the government to use its refrigerators and distribution network to store and move the vaccine.

Waitrose 

Waitrose has donated its staff leisure centre at its HQ in Bracknell, Berkshire, to be repurposed as a temporary vaccination site for the next six months, with nearly 1,000 residents being vaccinated at the premises in its first two days in operation. 

Department store stablemate John Lewis is also preparing to offer up store space to aid with the inoculation drive while its stores are closed due to the latest national lockdown.

The retailer said it is “developing plans to offer vaccine support to other communities across the country by providing space in our temporarily closed John Lewis shops”.

Morrisons 

The supermarket chain is handing over space in the car parks of three of its stores from January 11 for NHS staff to use as vaccination sites, with space in 47 more made available if needed.

“We’ll work with the pace of the vaccine distribution to make sure that the assets of this company are at the disposal of the country”

David Potts, Morrisons 

 

Morrisons boss David Potts said: “We’ve said to the government: look, there’s another 47 stores to go there if you want it. We’ll work with the pace of the vaccine distribution to make sure that the assets of this company are at the disposal of the country.”

Superdrug 

Superdrug will be using five of its stores as vaccination hubs to aid the NHS with the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine.

The retailer said it was also in discussions with the NHS to allow its nurses and pharmacists to administer both of the approved vaccines.  

Superdrug healthcare director Michael Henry said: “We are the only high street retailer with a team of highly qualified nurses who, together with our pharmacists, have decades of experience of delivering mass vaccination services.

“Over the last nine months, we have been working closely with the NHS to support its Covid-19 efforts. This has included our nurses volunteering in hospitals, the wider community and blood transfusion centres.

“We are now supporting the rollout of its critical vaccination programme to help people most at risk from coronavirus.”

Tesco 

Tesco is understood to have offered its distribution arm to aid with the rollout of the vaccine.

The grocery giant’s subsidiary Best Food Logistics, which specialises in food delivery and supply chain, has offered its support on the logistical side of the vaccine process, which could include use of its refrigerated lorries and warehouses to transport the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.

PureGym

PureGym has offered up space in its centres, which are closed under current government guidelines, to help with the vaccination effort.

Speaking on BBC’s Question Time, chief executive Humphrey Cobbold said: “I’ve got 270 sites around the country of gyms… I’ve got three and a half thousand people on furlough… Our biggest interest collectively as a country is in seeing us come through this as swiftly as possible.”

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