Boxing Day sales still attract the shoppers

Telford shopping centre had about 200 shoppers waiting for the doors to open at 6am yesterday while at the Meole Brace retail park, Shrewsbury, the early morning sale hunters quickly filled the car park.

However those going to the Next sale in Shrewsbury town centre were amazed to find it almost deserted.

Michelle Wood was in the store in the Pride Hill centre just after 7am.

"My friends told me that Meole Brace is heaving and the the car park is gridlocked," she said.

"This is much better. My sister and I have an annual trip to the shops on Boxing Day going to a couple of stores and then back home just as everyone else in the family is waking up."

Glyn Morrow, the town centre manager in Telford said: "We opened at 6am today for the Next sale and we had a couple of hundred people outside."

He said the centre had had a great December.

"There is a lot to be said for the pre sales before Christmas when shoppers are making their last minute purchases," he said.

"We had an excellent Black Friday, our footfall numbers were down but had more money through the tills."

"We have had a lot of new stores and sales are up 15 to 20 per cent. We are really bucking the trend of other retail centres."

Mr Morrow said that 2019 was going to be a really exciting year for the centre.

"The fashion quarter is opening next year and we are spending more money on the rest of the centre. It is going to be really exciting for us."