Frenetic festive spend up give retailers huge boost

Christmas shopping begins in earnest at Sylvia Park. Photo / Herald on Sunday

New Zealand is heading towards Christmas at 340,000 purchases an hour.

This screeching rate of Eftpos purchases - up 5 per cent on spending patterns last year - appeared to match the frantic and sometimes testy nature of our packed shopping malls yesterday.

Paymark electronic transactions company boss Simon Tong said there were more than a million purchases yesterday - a lift for retailers on the recession-hit 2008 Christmas.

"In the busiest hour of the day (between 12pm and 1pm) we were processing 103 transactions each second."

Tong said there were 340,000 electronic purchases in that hour alone. "The trend is that we're up 5 per cent on this time last year."

Store managers in different malls reported packed shops and eager customers. Jay Jays St Lukes assistant manager Lexie Kirkconnell-Kawana said they had been "ridiculously busy" for the past two weeks. "We've been finding more people are spending more money this year, which is good."

Valley Girl Westfield Albany manager Alisha Newall said yesterday had been the busiest day so far. "There has been a massive line out the door."

She said the long narrow shop layout put shoppers in close quarters and this meant tempers could get a bit short and fights could break out over the last sale items. "It's a bit crazy. It takes a lot of patience." At Sylvia Park shopping mall in Mt Wellington, Bendon manager Carolyn Hansch said they had being doing "pretty well". "It's started!" she laughed.

When asked about high-stress shopper tantrums, she said: "It's usually the men. ... when they're with their partners and sick of shopping."

Cotton On Sylvia Park manager Philomena Inivale said business had picked up, but not as much as she had thought.

There had also been an increase in thefts, she said, particularly among young people who, when caught, offered the excuse, "Oh, you know, it was for a gift".

Among the thousands of shoppers at Sylvia Park yesterday was Jeffery Dowthwaite who had braved the mall, despite it being "pretty packed".

"I worked on a budget and got similar presents for everyone. I was shopping for four girls so went to the Body Shop."

The worst thing to get for Christmas were hand-me-downs, he said. "I get re-gifted presents from my grandmother. She gave me my grandad's Old Spice one year. Thankfully it wasn't open, so that was all right."

Minnie Kaur said she had been browsing and planned to do her shopping during the midnight closing periods to avoid the crowds.

A pet Christmas peeve is when "people get you clothes they know you just wouldn't wear".

Thomas Geddes said he had done only a "little bit" of his shopping, even though he was anticipating worsening crowds. His tactic was to aim for favourite stores, rather than browsing. Vouchers, he said, could be the best gift - or the worst.

"They're good because you can get what you want, but at the same time you know no thought has gone into it."

Jinal Indravaden was "putting off" her Christmas shopping to keep her gift options open. The mall had been "really busy" and crowds were part of the reason she plans to do her shopping later.

Even though it is said to be the thought that counts, Jinal said the thought was not a gift.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY