Holiday shopping might be your biggest opportunity to find retail steals this season, but it shouldn’t also steal your health! Unfortunately, retail environments pose such a risk; when hundreds of people gather in places like shopping malls, department stores, and strip malls, all hoping for the best deal, it can cause illness-causing pathogens to spike significantly amid the crowds. UV light disinfection for retail spaces can offer protection for shoppers against the myriad of common illnesses that the chilly, wet winter months bring – making it a sensible addition for any retail space.
Frantic shopping and flu season go hand-in-hand in November and December. In today’s age, 59% of consumers prefer to shop online. Convenience is one factor, but shoppers also prioritize health and wellness, and want to limit germ transmission. Unfortunately, this unchecked concern can be a potential death knell to brick-and-mortar stores and businesses. But, by investing in UVC light disinfecting fixtures from Farlite Solutions®, your business can stay ahead of airborne germs and bacteria and prioritize a safe retail experience for your customers – which is good business for you!
Why Manual Cleaning Fails to Keep Up with UV Light Technology
Holiday seasons can bring massive crowds, and those crowds can carry highly contagious germs that can live in the air for hours after the masses have dissipated. If your store is still relying on physical cleaning methods, you’re only tackling part of the problem – and doing it inefficiently, at that. Without a reliable and constant defense system against airborne pathogens, your customers are exposed to avoidable health risks during peak shopping hours. The key factors that make physical cleaning alone ineffective include:
- Time: Many areas of physical stores have extremely high turnover rates, resulting in large build-ups of harmful airborne pathogens from talking, coughing, and moving. This makes it impossible to use physical cleaning alone for effective cleaning during peak hours.
- Human error: Physical cleaning can miss critical spots, primarily due to a lack of care and improper dwell time. Dwell time is crucial when using chemical agents, as most chemical sprays require several minutes of contact time to kill bacteria effectively.
- Staff strain: When your staff is focused on cleaning, especially during high-volume shopping times, it can lead to poor customer service and slow sales.
- Airborne ineffectiveness: Manual cleaning is better at surface cleaning than in the air. Germicidal sprays cannot constantly battle the minute pathogens that are carried in the air by HVAC systems and people entering and leaving the space.
UVC light disinfection is the perfect way to provide your retail business with constant, automated cleaning that provides continuous disinfection even during peak shopping hours.
UVC Light: The Science of Cleaner, Safer Air
Your retail business should be creating a space that not only looks clean, but is truly clean, even down to the air your customers breathe. If you want to provide your retail business with a molecular level of clean, UVC light disinfection is the only solution. UV light disinfection is backed by simple, proven science that can make a clear difference in public health and safety for retail spaces.
UV light comes in three primary wavelengths:
- UVA: This type of light has the longest wavelength and is what causes our skin to tan when exposed to sunlight.
- UVB: The wavelength of UVB light is slightly shorter than that of its UVA counterpart, making it stronger and more problematic to unprotected skin.
- UVC: This light has the shortest wavelength. Because of this, it cannot naturally reach Earth. However, while UVA and UVB wavelengths can kill some germs, they are not nearly as effective as UVC.
That’s why when we talk about UV light disinfection, we are specifically talking about UVC. This light fights airborne bacteria and germs by physically destroying the DNA and RNA of the pathogen, preventing them from multiplying or lingering in the air. The list of pathogens that this technology is effective against includes a multitude of common viruses, bacteria, and airborne mold.
Farlite Solutions’ UVPhasor® fixture provides safe, effective cleaning by directing the UVC light upward toward the ceiling. Not only does this catch and eliminate airborne pathogens, but it also protects customers from contact with UV light. These fixtures are also safer than chemical cleaning products, as they limit the toxic or irritating fumes often found in chemical solutions that can cause allergies, coughing, and rashes.
Invisible Defense with UV Light Air Cleaning Power
One of the largest threats to contagious illnesses is the air we breathe in retail and other commercial spaces. By strategically utilizing UV light disinfection fixtures, you can provide your retail space with an invisible force of protection against airborne bacteria, viruses, and mold. By doing this, you can prevent the illnesses that typically come during the busy winter holiday season. UVPhasors are placed in targeted zones that typically experience the highest foot traffic, while taking into account airflow to accurately target even the smallest pathogens as they float through the air.
Continuous Air Disinfection in Crowded Zones
Installing a UVPhasor in high-traffic zones can help create a disinfection shield in some of the busiest areas of your store. Some key spots where a UVPhasor can be most useful include above checkout lines, fitting rooms, and other common areas throughout a retail center. The Farlite UVPhasor is not only practical but also non-intrusive and customizable, meaning your cleaning power won’t compromise your retail space’s aesthetic design.
UVC Light Disinfection: A Modern Retail Business Asset
When you protect the air your customers breathe, you’re increasing both shopper satisfaction and revenue. Some of the most significant benefits of installing UV light disinfection fixtures include:
- Boosted shopper confidence
- Reduced operation downtime due to avoidable illness among employees
- Secured profitability and system efficiency
UV light disinfection can help transform the holiday shopping season from a stress-inducing frenzy to a safe and comfortable space for your customers and staff. This can lead to higher profitability and increased staff productivity.
Securing Holiday Retail Safety With UV Light Protection
As the holiday season approaches, it magnifies the importance of investing in a modern, effective air disinfection solution for your retail space. Farlite’s UVPhasor can even be programmed to increase its disinfecting power during high-traffic retail hours and events. This green approach helps eliminate airborne bacteria when you need it most, while cutting down on energy use – and costs – when you don’t.
By demonstrating your commitment to health and safety, you can enhance the air quality in your retail space and maintain the well-being of both your staff and customers throughout the holiday season. Contact Farlite Solutions today to get a UV light disinfection fixture estimate for your retail space.