More US retailers stop 'open-carry' guns in stores

NEW YORK

Major retailers Walgreens, CVS and Wegmans on Thursday joined other outlets in calling for shoppers to no longer openly carry firearms in their stores, marking a shift in gun policy after several deadly mass shootings in the United States.

Earlier this week, Walmart, the largest retailer in the country, barred customers from carrying firearms into any of its outlets and said it would stop selling ammunition for handguns and some assault-style rifles in U.S. stores.

In a statement Thursday, the drugstore chain Walgreens said it was "joining other retailers in asking our customers to no longer openly carry firearms into our stores other than authorized law enforcement officials."

In a tweet, Wegmans, a supermarket chain, said: “There’s nothing more important than the safety of our customers & employees.”

"The sight of someone with a gun can be alarming, and we don't want anyone to feel that way at Wegmans. For this reason, we prefer that customers not openly carry firearms into our stores."

In a statement, CVS, another drugstore chain, said it supports the “efforts of individuals and groups working to prevent gun violence, and continually review our policies and procedures to ensure our stores remain a safe environment”.

“We join a growing chorus of businesses in requesting that our customers, other than authorized law enforcement personnel, do not bring firearms into our stores,” the statement added.

Retailers have faced growing pressure from campaigners, customers and workers to take action against gun violence after a series of mass shootings in recent months, including the Aug. 3 slaughter in a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas.

The moves mark a departure in how private U.S. firms position themselves in America’s fractious gun debate, even as lawmakers remain split on whether to tighten rules on the sale and licensing of firearms.