6:10pm Monday 21st December 2009
By Jon Reeve
THEY came, they saw, they shopped.
Thousands of festive shoppers descended on Southampton’s WestQuay Shopping Centre at the weekend in the hunt for those last-minute presents and even some early sale bargains.
But despite streams of people arriving from across the city, Hampshire and beyond, there wasn’t quite the manic rush many had predicted for the final Saturday and Sunday before Christmas – traditionally the busiest shopping days of the year.
And maybe because there are still four days to go, or maybe because more organised people did the bulk of their buying early or stocked up on gifts online, there was not yet the mad panic to buy just about anything to put under the tree.
With steady queues at the tills and millions of pounds flowing through the cash registers, most shops were standing strong and resisting the temptation to slash prices before the Boxing Day sales.
A few outlets were offering various discounts, but bargain hunters were likely to go home disappointed.
Outside the centre, shoppers took time out to soak up the Christmas spirit by enjoying the food and drink on offer at the German market and watching street performers in the precinct.
WestQuay’s general manager Andy Collyer said the centre is enjoying a busy festive shopping season.
“We’ve welcomed over two million visitors over the last six weeks alone and are expecting even more shoppers through our doors in the run up to Christmas Day,” he said.
“We’ve seen increased footfall in comparison with 2008 and anecdotal feedback from our retailers is showing improved customer confidence with reports of strong sales.”
While fears have been raised that the recession has caused many to tighten their belts this year, most shoppers the Daily Echo spoke to said they hadn’t changed their spending habits because of the downturn.
“I’ve been in retail 17 years and I’ve never seen it this quiet on a Saturday,” said Sam Khaira, from Bishopstoke.
“But I don’t think it’s to do with the recession, I think everyone’s still spending but they’ve spent early and everyone’s been a bit organised this year.
“I think November was busier than December so the recession definitely hasn’t affected shoppers, they’re just planning ahead and don’t want to get caught out and have to rush around in December when it’s normally mayhem.”
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