Fred Meyer limits customer counts; Bend shoppers don’t notice difference

The store says its limit is one customer per 120 square feet in its stores

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Fred Meyer said Monday it would begin implementing stricter social distancing guidelines on Tuesday by limiting the number of guests it lets in its stores, but shoppers said it didn't look like much had changed.

There's no lines of people waiting to get into the store or employees monitoring the entrances. The retail chain says it is using technology called QueVision to monitor its entrances.

A spokesman for Fred Meyer tells NewsChannel 21 if the store begins to reach its new, reduced capacity, it will try to check out guests quicker and have employees monitoring the flow into the store.

"It makes sense they would limit the number of people in the store at a time," shopper Gabriel Wild said "With that being said, it doesn't really seem like it is being enforced by anyone. I didn't even know until you told me."

Another shopper said social distancing is a good idea but that limiting the number of guests in a supermarket might not have much of an effect.

" I think social distancing is great," Jason Wakeman said. "Limiting the number of people in the store doesn't really make sense, though, because if one person that goes in is infected and they touch stuff, it doesn't matter if there's 10 people in there, or 50 or 100."

Other national operations with stores in the area such as Best Buy, Target, Trader Joe's and Walmart have also started restricting the number of guests in their stores as well.