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The lights were dimmed and the cash register sounds were turned off at the Sobeys in south Regina on Thursday evening as the store held its first sensory-friendly shopping night.
It was meant to make grocery shopping easier for people with sensory sensitivities, like those with migraines or autism.
“They can’t be in an environment that has those potentials to trigger the sensory sensitivity, so we’re creating an opportunity to be as inclusive as possible,” Sobeys spokeswoman Florence Chapman said before Thursday’s event.
To rid the store of the usual triggers, Chapman said the overhead and food case lighting would be dimmed by 50 per cent and the sounds of the intercom system, telephones, registers and scanners would be turned off.
She noted that even the usual tasks, such as putting away shopping carts, were to be put off until after closing.
The first sensory-friendly shopping night was held in Summerside, P.E.I., in October, after a Sobeys there was approached by a local autism non-profit.
After getting “all kinds of incredibly positive customer feedback,” Chapman said it was expanded to all Sobeys stores in the Maritimes and Ontario.
“(Customers) have said everything from, ‘I can now bring my family or friends in who suffer from sensitivity’ to ‘I now get to be a part of the shopping experience,’ ” she explained.
As for those people who don’t have any sensory sensitivity issues, Chapman said it’s a chance for them to learn.
“Sometimes when the store’s looking a little different, they might say, ‘Hey, are you open?’ And we’d say, ‘Absolutely, here’s what we’re doing.’ It’s really a learning opportunity for those in the community to understand what are sensory sensitivities and what are we trying to achieve,” she explained.
“We’re really trying to welcome and be reflective of the customers in our communities.”
According to Chapman, the Sobeys on Albert Street South in Regina is the first store in Saskatchewan to hold sensory-friendly shopping hours. They’re to be held every Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m.