• The post you are reporting:
   
  I set off for a marathon shop yesterday..forced at gunpoint to go at all...and went to Westward Cross. I had only ever been there once before. It was a freezing day, and whatever way the place is laid out overthere..it acts as a fierce wind funnel..so every time you stuck your gob outside one shop you were in the teeth of a shivering gale until you shuffled into another. Shopping is totally traumatising at the best of times so this handicapped approach doesnt help. My feeling at this juncture is that they should have put a roof on it!!
  
  It was NOT crowded over there either..am reminded of this as i gaze at Howards pictures above ( which are a bit of a Dover Christmas shocker if the truth be told) and as ever..a picture says a thousand words.
  
  The carpark at Westward Cross was quite full from early on and remained so, so where all the people were was baffling to me..unless they were just spread thinly across the huge amount of shops. The carpark was of course FREE so no charge there...a great help. Mary Portas called for this yesterday in her meeting with the Prime Minister..."free parking is essential in the centre of towns now if they are to survive"..said she.
  
  Councils wont like that one....but people are handicapped before they start by a £4 or £5 surcharge if they want to shop in a town. This would pay some peoples food bill for a week!!
  
  But overall perhaps the austerity is kicking in. Already on show were bargains...50% off shoes..30% off womens make up perfume stuff etc etc. The shops are trying to fight back but I think Howards pictures tell the tale of the moment, unless there is a late surge it could be a bleaker Christmas than in previous years.

Report Post

Your Name

Reason