Costco, Home Depot to limit number of shoppers in stores

April 1, 2020

Major retailers Costco Wholesale Corp. and Home Depot will begin limiting how many people can shop together in their stores.

Starting April 3, Costco will allow no more than two people per membership card to come into the store at one time.

“This temporary change is for your safety and the safety of our employees and other members and to further assist with our social distancing efforts,” the company said in a statement.

Customers will be limited in quantities they can purchase for certain items. The food court is open for carryout but not seating.

Until further notice, Costco warehouses will be open from 8 to 9 a.m. Tuesday through Thursday for members 60 and older and for those with physical impairments. The pharmacy will be open, but the Costco food court will be closed during this time.

The store will close at 6:30 p.m. weekdays and 6 p.m. on weekends. The gas stations will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and will close at 6:30 p.m. on weekends.

Home Depot also has announced it might limit the number of customers in the store at any one time to control social distancing.

Stores will be closing daily at 6 p.m. until further notice to allow more time for cleaning and stocking.

“While prioritizing shipments of essential supplies to hospitals and first responders, our supply chain team is focused on restocking inventory safely and quickly,” the company said on its website. “Please note that most of our personal protective equipment inventory is being donated to state governments, so these items may be unavailable in stores and online.”

The store offers free pickup and continues to deliver online orders, although there might be delays.

Home Depot also announced it is “eliminating major spring promotions to avoid driving high levels of traffic to stores,” it said. “In addition to training our associates on social distancing, we’ve placed distancing markers at counters, posted signage throughout the stores and are making overhead announcements on our store PA systems asking customers to maintain safe distances.”

Find COVID-19 case numbers, other updates here

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Costco, Home Depot to limit number of shoppers in stores

Social distancing at work: Costco and Home Depot will begin limiting the number of customers in their stores.

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