High Street boom lifting the gloom
Shoppers shook off the doom and gloom of the recession and hit the high street to bag some Christmas bargains.
Shoppers shook off the doom and gloom of the recession and hit the high street to bag some Christmas bargains.
High street sales may have been depressed as the credit crunch tightened its grip – but this weekend proved the exception in the West Midlands, as thousands of shoppers braved the chill and crowds to shop.
The Merry Hill centre, Birmingham's Bullring and Frankfurt Christmas market, and Wolverhampton's Wulfrun Centre all saw shoppers splash the cash.
Rebecca Jeavons, marketing manager for Brierley Hill's Merry Hill, said: "December is obviously a key month for shoppers and we were particularly busy this weekend.
"A number of our major retailers have pre-Christmas sales this year and with increased footfall since the opening of our £24 million Eat Central development, Merry Hill is once again proving to be a popular Christmas shopping destination."
Trade experts say the first weekend in December is traditionally extremely busy.
Katie Teasdale, of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, said that 23 per cent of all retail trade happened between the middle of November and the New Year sales.
She said that department stores in particular are thriving this year, with smaller shops offering more niche products suffering from lower trade.
Diane Werle, of Springboard, who manages the footfall count for more than 300 High Streets across the UK, said: "The country as a whole saw a strong footfall this weekend, as a study of five year trends shows that the first Christmas shopping Saturday in December, after November pay day, is traditionally a bumper one."
In London, more than 1,000 buses were re-routed in the Oxford Street and Regent Street areas to provide a stress and traffic-free Christmas shopping zone.
Peter Hendy, London's Transport Commissioner, said: "We are delighted to once again support the West End's VIP Day, which grows in popularity each year. For the fifth year running Oxford Street and Regent Street will be effectively pedestrianised."
The lack of traffic for the fifth 'Shop West End Very Important Pedestrians Day' enticed big crowds with more than £200m predicted to have been rung through the tills of West End stores on Saturday.
Jace Tyrrell, of the New West End Company, said: "The shopping appetite has been exceptional, with many stores reporting excellent sales in big ticket items before the January VAT change.
"Within the first hour we estimate that over 400 televisions had sold with the price point averaging over £1,000 a set.
"Fashion accessories did roaring trade over 1,000 luxury bags with the average price point of £700 sold by midday. Many stores reported that the European shoppers are still boosting luxury sales, with stores reporting sensational sales of Mulberry & Louis Vuitton today, with fine jewellery at Selfridges & Liberty also selling well."
