Sensory-Friendly Sundays: PCC’s Quiet Shopping Hour
A weekly sensory-friendly shopping hour at all PCC stores will provide a quieter, calmer environment with the goal of supporting neurodiverse community members.
From 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Sundays, staff at all PCC stores will dim the lights and mute music and overhead announcements, along with other measures that could support shoppers with sensory processing or autism spectrum disorders. PCC staff will pause restocking shelves for that “Quiet Shopping Hour” to reduce crowding in store aisles and will turn down the volume on self-checkout machines and cash registers. Noisier tasks such as using the band saw in the meat department will not be scheduled during that hour, among other accommodations.
Additionally, a free sensory kit will be available on request at the self-checkout stations, containing aids such as fidgets and earplugs.
Progressive Grocer magazine called PCC’s move “another step to include and support its customers.”
Grocery stores can be challenging environments for neurodiverse shoppers and staff members, given potential sensory overload triggers like beeping cash registers, jostling crowds, bright lights and strong scents, noted the National Co-op Grocers organization, which suggests training staff on reducing these triggers and on ways to support shoppers. (PCC stores are already fragrance-free workplaces.) By some estimates as much as 20% of the U.S. population could be neurodivergent (defined by the Cleveland Clinic as “a nonmedical term that describes people whose brains develop or work differently for some reason”), and it can be difficult or exhausting for many neurodiverse people to filter out such strong sensory input.
The co-op wide Quiet Shopping Hour began on Feb. 18, following a pilot in July of 2023. The July event, marking the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, drew shoppers who said they appreciated the reduced stimulation and stress. One customer called the approach “gentle and welcoming.” Both shoppers and staff surveyed after the pilot supported making the sensory-friendly shopping hour a regular opportunity.