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Original poster

How busy have the shops been this Christmas where you live ??

43 replies

PutinSmellsPassItOn · 15/12/2023 21:11

Went to my nearest city to do some Christmas shopping yesterday and was shocked at how dead it was. Not only that but how full the shops were, even primark was full of snuddies, pj's etc and had slashed the prices, usually they're impossible to get hold of by now.........it was sad to see tbh. I've noticed online too, massive discounts on toys etc. I think stock just isn't moving.

My own town is the same, not that we have many shops, is it similar in your area ? And what is it? Is it due to online shopping or because people are bloody skint?? !

OP posts:
AnyFucker · 15/12/2023 21:26

Same here in Manchester. Turned up at the Trafford Centre expecting to struggle parking and the car park was half empty.

ThisOldThang · 15/12/2023 21:30

We did the same thing in Sutton, London.

The shopping centre has seen better days and is clearly struggling without Debenhams, BHS, Woolworths, etc.

The High Street was fairly dead.

When i was a kid, you couldn't move in shops before Christmas.

IggyAce · 15/12/2023 21:31

Just back from the metro centre, it was busy but not as busy as I was expecting. I popped to my local Tesco this afternoon and it was very busy.

TheTecknician · 15/12/2023 21:32

The supermarkets in my general area don't really seem that busy for mid-December. However, their associated car parks are largely full. That's Morrison's, Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Booth's and Aldi. I guess those car drivers are going somewhere. Not far from me, Sainsbury's offers 4 hours free parking but Waitrose only gives you 1.5 hours. Parking spaces at Sainsbury's from Thursday through to Saturday morning are like gold dust!

Reggiebo · 15/12/2023 21:33

Wednesday mid morning...I was on my own in Lidl. Was expecting it to be full on but walked straight up to a till. It was strangely weird.

SirenSays · 15/12/2023 21:34

Pretty busy but what I am noticing is people only seem to have one bag. The years of people waddling down the high street with 8 overflowing bags seems to be over

Ladyj84 · 15/12/2023 21:34

We went down to metro center and it was nothing like it used to be. In our own town it's quiet

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 15/12/2023 21:35

Smyths toy shop was super busy at lunchtime today.

Forgotmylogindetails · 15/12/2023 21:38

Oxford street regents street etc dead this morning , starting getting busier by about 3 but still nothing like it usually is

AllAroundMyCat · 15/12/2023 21:38

Utterly rammed.
I'm assuming the WFH brigade have wangled time off from their screens. 🙄

febbabies2023 · 15/12/2023 21:39

I mean bluewater has been pretty busy the last couple of times I've been! I've got to do my shopping on Thursday and I'm dreading going to the Ashford Designer Outlet and bluewater!

Antsinmypantsneedtodance · 15/12/2023 21:40

I think its people are being cautious with their cash.

Popped to the shops this afternoon. Usually heaving on a friday afternoon. Car park half empty. Shops quiet. Stuff on shelves and lots of reductions.

I know i've been more conscious of purchases this year. Buying toys i know will be played with and adult gifts only for immediate family. Even then they're small gifts.

Often i'd end up picking up some bits for me while shopping in sales. But have skipped thst this year.

I have noticed however the secondhand market has been really hot! Items (toys) listed on vinted in good or new condition snapped up. Same for items on FB marketplace.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 15/12/2023 21:45

The shops near me are busy enough, but Liberty and Fortnums were insanely busy today.

OceanicBoundlessness · 15/12/2023 21:49

I keep over hearing the staff saying how busy it is but I must be picking quiet times.

I'm struggling to find anything I want to buy and I have four teenagers stockings to make up.

mondaytosunday · 15/12/2023 21:55

Went into central London this week and it was very busy, but hard to say whether they were shoppers or workers or tourists or what. Only popped in to one shop but there were a number of shoppers there.
Went to Westfield last year during the summer and it was heaving!
I used to love going to the shops but I'm guilty of buying online more often than not. One year on Oxford St M&S (I think) had musicians on each floor and it was so festive!

lljkk · 15/12/2023 21:58

Norwich castle mall today, city centre, noon. It's a clean, bright, spacious, airy, cheerful handsome modern mall with parking underneath. Weather was dry and not that cold.

Most the mall units are empty. Of the occupied units, maybe 10% are charity shops.

Bit of busy-ness at one entrance near some food shops. Bit of footfall at carpark entrance & the toilets. Otherwise, Not busy at all. Very sad.

I suspect the out of town big supermarkets were busy, though. The sorts of places where you drive from one shop to the next one. Irk.

HundredMilesAnHour · 15/12/2023 21:59

I'm in London and the shops near me have been absolutely rammed since the start of December. My local supermarket had a queue of SIXTY-SEVEN people waiting to use the self-checkouts last Sat afternoon (yes, I was in the queue so long that I had time to count them all). I've never seen it like that before ever. Just horrendous!

I have to go into the West End tomorrow to get my hair cut and I'm dreading it. It's bad normally the last few weekends before Christmas is a special sort of hell.

Notsurehwhattdo · 15/12/2023 22:00

AllAroundMyCat · 15/12/2023 21:38

Utterly rammed.
I'm assuming the WFH brigade have wangled time off from their screens. 🙄

Lots of people take a day or half day off this time of year to do Christmas shopping. You can't just wangle time off WFH, you have the same work you'd have to get done at the office and can't just swan off unless using annual leave. If WFH is so great, change careers.

Notsurehwhattdo · 15/12/2023 22:02

To be honest, I've always hated shopping. The advent of online shopping is a god send for me. I've done 90% of my shopping online this Christmas.

ssd · 15/12/2023 22:05

I work in retail and its been busy when special offers are on

purpleme12 · 15/12/2023 22:07

Well I've definitely noticed it's getting busier in town as we get nearer to Christmas

DelurkingAJ · 15/12/2023 22:07

Busy as normal (affluent town in the SE). Took the day off yesterday to do shopping with DH and it was about as it’s always been 10 days out from Xmas.

TomatoSandwiches · 15/12/2023 22:09

I did most of my Chritmas present shopping in October/November online as I'm sick of physically shopping now.
The post office is always bloody jam packed though.

Crikeyalmighty · 15/12/2023 22:12

Well it's been totally nuts in Bath for last 3 weeks due to Xmas market- so I'm appreciating now it's ended that it's a bit quieter-still busy though

SellFridges · 15/12/2023 22:13

Birmingham has been the busiest I have ever seen it, and stock levels are awful in my opinion. Tonnes of piles of random tat but few sizes in pyjamas or socks etc. I’ve been into town about 5 or 6 times in the last month and it’s been carnage. Trains utterly rammed as well.

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