Make your retail business accessible

If you're a retailer, making your space accessible is great for business. Find out how to make sure your business is truly inclusive.

May 24th, 2023

A person is being served at a store counter which is at regular table height

Having a truly inclusive business is good for everybody. It means people with impairments can have the same access as non-disabled people, while your business benefits from their custom.

Bron from Be Free Grocer talks about how she made her store accessible.

Here are 10 ways to make your retail business accessible.

1. Have staff attend a Disability Responsiveness Workshop

The biggest barriers for people with disabilities aren’t necessarily physical. People’s attitudes are the biggest limitation. You can have a space that ticks all the right boxes for accessibility, but if your people don’t understand how to respond appropriately to people with disabilities it will be wasted.

To avoid this, make sure your staff are trained in disability responsiveness. Attending a workshop by Disability Responsiveness NZ is a great way to do this. These workshops are designed to train staff to respond appropriately to people with disabilities. This includes things like using inclusive language, understanding the cultural context of disability, and how to assist people with specific impairments.

Find out about Disability Responsiveness Workshops

Video duration 3:03

[Music playing]

Bronywn: Hi, my name's Bronwyn, I'm one of the owners here at Be Free Grocer which is a plastic-free store in Palmerston North.

Bronywn: Accessibility was a hugely important consideration for us. We were kind of never going to design a space that wasn't accessible. So right from the get-go we were looking at things like the width of the aisles so that people that use mobility aids like wheelchairs or scooters actually had enough room not just to get down the aisle but to sort of maneuver at the end of the aisles and so on.

Bronywn: It's also one of the reasons why we've kept pretty much everything at one height, which is accessible because we didn't wanna have things down too low or obviously too high out of reach, so with our food, for instance, you can see sort of behind me we've kept pretty much all of our food on one level, and that was quite a conscious decision because I've seen a lot of models where, like, bulk bins will sort of be stacked on top of each other so we actively chose not to do that so that all... pretty much all the food is in plain sight and is actually able to be, you know, physically reached into and scooped, you know, from the vantage point of someone that uses a wheelchair or uses a scooter, for instance.

Bronywn: We actually looked at how many, kind of, aisles we could comfortably get in and we purposely decided not to have- like, it would have been possible to fit two aisles in the middle there but we actively decided not to do that, so that we had… we preferred to have more space on either side and a big turning circle.

Bronywn: Actually we were lucky enough to have… a bit of the counter was left from the previous tenant so we kept that so that people could come up and the EFTPOS obviously can be placed down on that lower counter level, so we wanted everything kind of about how we designed the store to give people as much independence as possible, and not to have to have people to help them to do various things 'cause things are out of reach and so on.

Bronywn: When we first opened a lady that used a wheelchair said that she loved it because she could actually see everything in the shop and that she often can't get to that vantage point and so on. But also just from people who, you know, are able bodied who don't use any mobility aids, I think it's visually appealing as well because it's uncluttered and people can kinda see that.

Bronywn: I think being switched into that and how you can make a store look good and be accessible at the same time is something that retailers need to consider.

[Music fades out]

2. Make sure entrances are wide and clear

Ensure thatthe mainentrances are level and clear of obstacles. There should be at least 1200mm of clear space either side of the entrance.

Entrances should be level. This is important for people using a wheeled mobilityaidso they don’troll when trying to open or close the door.

Entrances should be at least810mmwide, but850mm is better.Official guidelines suggest a minimum of 760mm, but thiswas set in 2001 and has since been found to be too narrow for larger mobility aids to go through easily.

Doors should be easy to open. The door opening pressure should be no greater than 8lbs for external non-fire doors, and 5lbs for internal non-fire doors.Many people with disabilities struggle to push or pull doors, and if the pressure is set toohigh,they might injure themselves.

3. Leave plenty of room around displays

There should be a clearroute of at least1200mm around all your displays. This widthallows for people using a wide range of mobility aids.

Some wheelchairs and mobility scooters require a turning circleof more than1500mm.

A table in a store containing jars has lots of space around it

Wide aisles and plenty of room around displays means items are accessible to everyone

4. Make everything highly visible

Make sure the lighting in your space is adequate. This is important for people with visual impairments and people who lip read.

Incorporate contrasting coloursthroughout the store to help partially sighted peopleidentify objects. For example,use different colours between a benchtop and its edges, or between the top of a step and the front. You can also do this by using contrasting patterns orusinglighting.

5. Try to minimise noise

Ensure that noise levels are not tooloudto be of concern forpeoplewho have sensory challenges.

Too much background noise can affectpeoplewith attention deficit disorders orthosewith hearing impairments or using hearing aids. It can also be a challenge for peopleon the autism spectrum.

Sound in a room can be dampened by using soft furnishings and curtains, or installingsound absorbing panels. If this is not realistic, considerhaving aregular“quiet hour”,a period of timewhennoise levels are loweredfor people with sensory challenges.

6. Have a loweredcounter

Countersin many businesses areat a height of around 1200mm.At this height, peopleof short stature orina seatedmobility aid may struggle tobe served, or even seen.

A good height for both standing and seated people is900mm.If this isn’t possible, a two-tiered counter is a good idea, with a higher level and a lower level.Just make sure thatneither is seen as the main part of the counter, and that both are clearly visible when approaching.

At minimum, ensure that there is either a lowered section on the counter or a shelf that a person in a wheelchair or of short statue can use.

Reception counters and desksshouldbe designed so that people with disabilities are able to carry out the normal processes and activities expected at the counter or desk.

Make sure payment terminals are mounted at no higher than 1200mm. Ideally, thepayment terminal will be cordless so it can be easily accessed by everyone.

A low counter means everyone is able to conduct sales transactions easily

7. Ensuredressing rooms are accessible

Ifyou’re a clothing retailer, make sure you have accessible dressing rooms that meet these requirements:

Floor area must allow for a turning circle of at least 1500mm
Coathooks should be provided at a height of between 1000mm to 1350mm
A bench seatshould beinstalledat430mm to 485mm high with back support and arm rest preferred
The doorshouldswing out.Ifitswingsinthen the floor area will need tobe needtoincreased

8.Put displays at the right height

Displaysshould bemounted at no higher than 1200mm. If there arehigher displays, such as in clothing stores,ensure that staff are available to assist.

The common reachable height for a personin a wheelchairand an ambient person isbetween 700mm and 1200mm.

9. Ensure signs are clear and concise

Signsshould be informative, directional and locational, using the international symbol of access (ISA) to indicate accessible features.

Informative signage means people with disabilities can easily seewhether accessible facilities are provided. For example,placing the ISA next to a sign with the word ‘toilet’ indicates that a building contains an accessible toilet. This is important because aperson’s independence is enhanced when they don’t have to ask whether a building is accessible.

Directional signage is that which shows a personwhere an accessible feature is.This could involve the use of arrows or distance measurements to indicate where a feature is located.

Locational signageidentifies the accessible feature itself. For example, if a toilet is accessible it should have theISA label somewhere on or near the door.

Learn about how to use accessible signs and symbols correctly

10. Have an accessible website

Ensure that your website is accessible to people with disabilities, including those using assistive technologies such as screen readers, screen magnifiers,andswitch controls.

This means if you have pictures on your website, include ametadescriptiondescribing the picture so people who are visually impaired can enjoy the site fully.

Conclusion

Making your retail store accessible is one of the most important things you can do. Being inclusive of everyone, regardless of their ability, is great for business. By considering the requirements of people with impairments your store will be uncluttered, easy to navigate, and visually attractive. These are qualities all customers care about, whether they are disabled or not.