Shoppers queuing for hours should be celebrated, not mocked

Ikea's re-opening has been such a success that it's looking to give furlough money back to a number of governments, let's hope other retailers are soon in a position to do the same, writes Ben Chapman

Hundreds of shoppers stand in line ahead of the store opening at Primark in Birmingham, Monday 15 June 2020 (Jacob King/PA Wire)

As shoppers jostled to get into Nike's flagship Oxford Street Store on Monday and queued outside Primark branches around the country, a few on social media sneered.

The general tone of such missives was: "Look at these idiots so desperate for shoes and t-shirts they'll queue up before the shops open." Such tweeters might want to reconsider their position.

There is a legitimate question to ask about whether it is safe to open shops right now. But, assuming our government is correct, then people should shop, they must shop. In fact, we desperately need them to shop.

Ikea, which opened many of its stores across multiple countries a few weeks ago, shows how (safe, socially distanced) shopping can help us all out of the economic mess we're in.

The world's largest furniture retailer said over the weekend that it was looking to give back government money it received through furlough schemes in a number of countries.

Sales didn't fall by anywhere near the 70 to 80 per cent Ikea predicted at the start of the crisis and the company benefited from a lot from pent-up demand. Shoppers, having been set free from confinement in their homes, are now desperate to do them up.

Now Topshop, Sports Direct, Primark and others are enjoying a similar bounce as people seek out their a fast fashion fix after close to three months of lockdown.

How long it lasts remains to be seen. Footfall on high streets is still well below the same point a year ago. But the idea, often floated in recent weeks, that lockdown would slow down the ceaseless hamster wheel of consumerism, causing people to re-evaluate their purchasing habits, looks like it may turn out to be misplaced.

While some people might long for an economy geared towards something more than the accumulation of larger and larger amounts of stuff, we had better pray that any change in that direction doesn't happen very quickly.

Because, whether we like it or not, millions of jobs are dependent on shoppers buying lots of things they probably don't really need.

The current recession is characterised by an unprecedented, and largely deliberate, drop in demand for goods and services.

If demand doesn't come back close to where it was before, there is no need for the jobs that create the things which satisfy that demand. A big spike in unemployment risks turning a sharp recession into a long, painful depression.

So when people sneer on social media at lines outside Primark they are demonstrating ignorance of the situation we find ourselves in.

There are important debates to be had about the long-term sustainability of our current model of consumerism and what exactly we want the economy to be for. It's clear that changes need to be made to protect the future of the planet and to improve happiness, health and general wellbeing. But right now we desperately need people spending.

That will help get some of the 9 million people currently furloughed back into work, earning money and spending it themselves. It may be a hamster wheel but it is one we can't suddenly switch off.