Shrewsbury\u2019s busy Darwin and Pride Hill Shopping Centres are expecting well over a million shoppers through their doors this month.<\/p>\n
Retailers are in the middle of their busiest month of the year in the run-up to Christmas with footfall expected to be up by over 30 per cent and over \u00a370 million to go through the tills.<\/p>\n
At Monsoon, in the Darwin centre, Supervisor Amy Dunkerley said they expect to be about 40 per cent busier than in a normal month.<\/p>\n
She added: \u201cDecember is certainly our busiest month and it carries over into the first part of January as well and over the next couple of weeks we would expect to see sales up by about 40 per cent.<\/p>\n
\u201cParty dresses are the big sellers, particularly our lace dress which comes in three different colours, and also Christmas decorations and sleepwear too.\u201d<\/p>\n
At fashion store Roman, in the Pride Hill Centre, they are getting ready for their second Christmas in Shrewsbury after having a busy time last year and manager Trish Grace said: \u201cLast year was our first here and it went very well and we\u2019re hoping to do even better this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s already getting lively which is good and we\u2019re enjoying it. The Christmas decorations are up and looking good and we\u2019re ready.<\/p>\n
\u201cPartywear is popular, especially a lot of red and black and also gold and metallic, especially with all the events taking place at this time of year.\u201d<\/p>\n
At Ann Summers in the Darwin Centre they\u2019re also looking forward to their busiest time of the year and a spokesperson said: \u201cWe do really well in December \u2013 it can be double or even treble what we usually do.<\/p>\n
\u201cLingerie is a big seller for us and we\u2019ve got our new look Sexy Santa outfits in and we\u2019ve also got an Elf costume this year which is proving popular.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kevin Lockwood, Manager of the Darwin, Pride Hill and Riverside Shopping Centres, said: \u201cThis is a key time for retailers and we\u2019re really looking forward to it and expecting a busy month.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe would expect over a million shoppers in the Darwin Centre and half a million in Pride Hill and that\u2019s something like 40 per cent more than in an average month.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got late night opening, the Lantern Parade will kick things off next week and we\u2019ve got the Grotto in the Darwin centre this year so it\u2019s all set for a successful Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n