Havelock North shops and cafes busy over Christmas and New Year

Dale Cooley, from Papillon in Havelock North. Retail story. 2nd January 2018 Photographer Paul Taylor Hawke's Bay Today

Havelock North was awash with families and holiday-makers yesterday, as many businesses re-opened after the Christmas break.

While the Village Green was the destination for children and their parents and caregivers, a good number of people were checking out the shops, including Papillon Boutique.

Owner Dale Cooley, who had been there for five years, said it had been steady all morning yesterday, as it had been on the days the shop was open between Christmas and New Year.

"We were one of the few that were open on New Year's Eve and we were run off our feet."

She said the customers were mostly visitors to the region, including some who popped in every year when they were in the region for the festive season.

"I've had a lot of people from out of town who have been coming in between Christmas and New Year repeatedly - it's a bit of a destination, they make a beeline for us."

While many of the people were just browsing, they were ready to spend if they saw something they wanted, she said.

Papillon was one of the few shops open on New Year's Eve, as was the case on Sundays in general.

Ms Cooley said that it would be good if more shops opened on Sundays to make the most of the opportunity, particularly at this time of year when customers were in holiday mode and relaxing at local cafes.

She had never opened on Boxing Day, however, because that tended to be a day when people went to the big box outlets for the sales, she said.

Before Christmas, Papillon was awarded the best festive window gong for its Christmas display, as voted by members of the public in a promotion run by the Havelock North Business Association.

Last year, the association elected new president Jane Mackersey who said attracting more people to visit, shop and enjoy Havelock North would be a key focus.

She said the association would be doing more to promote Havelock North this year beyond the region, having had a shop local focus last year.