The big Christmas shop has begun.
That’s the message from retailers who are bracing themselves for their busiest time of year. Uniquely Nelson manager Cathy Madigan says the next two weeks will be all go in the city.
“This week signals the start of the serious Christmas shopping period, the fortnight before Christmas. Last week the rain was a bit of a dampener but this week is fine and people are really in the Christmas spirit now.”
Retailers say it’s going to be a “modestly good Christmas” she says. “I don’t think anyone is saying it’s going to be a bumper but the figures are up.”
Figures released by Paymark – which processes 75 per cent of the country’s eftpos transactions – show Nelson had growth of 6.5 per cent compared to last November and as a country, transactions are up by 8.6 per cent for the first seven days of December.
Gus Beullens, the owner of Trafalgar St Menswear shop Gustave’s, says he’s looked back on figures from the last time Christmas Day fell on a Wednesday, which was in 2002, and he thinks a similar pattern of last minute shopping will emerge this year. “Due to Christmas falling on a Wednesday, people are more inclined to shop on that last weekend and the Monday and Tuesday.”
Despite his prediction though, his figures for last week were well up on 2012 which he says is good sign. “I think we’ve had six or seven years of struggle and people are getting weary of it all, they want to go out and have a spend up.”
Morrison Square centre manager Nona Jackson says after the first weekend of their Christmas shopping period, stores were reporting back a really busy weekend. “Things are really buoyant, particularly the more gift oriented stores, but clothing too.”
Cathy says the atmosphere in the CBD is really positive.
“People are feeling good out there, it’s busy and the atmosphere is good.
She says the opening of Kmart in Richmond hasn’t had much of an impact on the city.
“Everyone’s been out to have a look but the type of things you’re buying at Kmart are nothing special. I think the novelty factor is over, I don’t see it having an ongoing impact on the city.”
