Recognising that Christmas shopping is going to be different this year, Boots elongated Black Friday to ensure customers could still shop its great value deals, but in a safe way.

Customer demand has been higher than ever, with double the amount of online orders being processed compared to the same period last year. The retailer has also had its biggest day for dispatched orders, with over 113,000 orders being shipped out to customers’ homes in one day. And this is a number that is continuing to grow as we get nearer to Black Friday weekend.

Alongside this, during the first week of the Boots Black Friday month of deals, boots.com saw an increase in website traffic of more than 60% versus last year, with searches for ‘Black Friday’ doubling compared to the same period in 2019.

Alan Penhale, Supply Chain Director, Boots UK said:“We’ve seen a big increase in boots.com orders throughout November and our supply chain has been working around the clock to keep up with demand. We’re expecting to reach over one million customer orders over Black Friday week, so our warehouse, fulfilment centres and picking from store colleagues will be working really hard to make sure we can keep up with demand.”

To help, Boots has increased the number of technologically advanced ‘Cobots’ in its warehouse. This Black Friday there are 200 Cobots, working in tandem with staff to pick, pack and despatch orders as quickly as possible.

Named an essential retailer by the government, Boots stores will remain open throughout the Black Friday weekend to ensure that communities have access to everything they need, including healthcare, medicines, prescriptions, pharmacy services and advice. Customers will be able to safely purchase across the whole of the store, including baby, beauty and Black Friday deals. Voted as one of the safest stores on the high street, comprehensive safety measures remain in place across all Boots stores.