Since there are hardly any students and employees present on campus, apart from the residents of Luna and Aurora, the SPAR in Luna has become very quiet. The store will remain open for as long as it’s allowed, says Erwin Binneveld of SPAR university. The store will close only after TU/e or the government decides differently, as far as he is concerned. “We do have new opening hours, which can be found on our app or website,” the Chief Grow Officer says. Adjustments to the store’s opening hours will be reconsidered every week.

There are no operational problems, Binneveld says. “However, turnover is so low that we, taking into account food waste, place our orders cautiously. As a result, the store might look less fully stocked than usual.

Friends against corona

Apart from TU/e, SPAR university has eight other branches on campuses in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Delft and Nijmegen, among other places. Like Flux, some of the stores at these campuses have closed as well. It’s likely that more branches will close, says Kyra van Elswijk, Chief Digital Officer at the supermarket chain. “Particularly on the terrains without residents.”

She says that each store has about eight to ten employees, some of them students with a side-job at SPAR university, some of them permanently employed. “Part of our staff is already at home now, and naturally this also applies to many colleagues from other branches, such as the catering sector. That is why we started a platform on Monday, Friends against corona, to see whether these people can be of help in the sectors currently so much in need of help.”

She’s thinking in particular of the healthcare sector. “People in that sector are obviously extremely busy, and they are preparing for a shortage of beds. They could use some extra hands with transport of equipment and food, cleaning, and setting up extra facilities.” Companies and institutions willing to lend a helping hand can come into contact with organizations in need of help via Linkedin, for example. Van Elswijk hopes that a little bit of extra publicity will soon lead to concrete results. “The payroll company with which we have a partnership will also inform its clients about this initiative, so we hope to receive many applications soon.”