Christmas spending up in Victoria from last year — but not for reason you think

With only two days left to buy last-minute gifts, these shopping centre giants share the best times to avoid the rush.

Shoppers head into the last 36 hours of shopping before Christmas — and these are the best times to avoid the rush. Picture: David Caird

With just two days to buy last-minute Christmas gifts, huge crowds are expected to descend on shopping centres.

Chadstone centre manager Daniel Boyle said he expected 170,000 people through the doors on Saturday and Sunday.

“One of the best things about this time of year is the extended trading hours,” Mr Boyle said.

“Leading up to Christmas, we are open from 8am until midnight.

“I always recommend coming in before lunch, or a little bit later in the day, so it’s nice and easy to park.”

Mr Boyle said the centre would see “strong” customer traffic prior to Christmas Day.

“We know that some of those cost of living pressures have been eased, particularly recently with Black Friday.

Last minute shoppers Josh Steen, Sophie Vickers, Tegan Bennett and Alice Stanley at Chadstone Shopping Centre. Picture: David Caird

“There’s a great opportunity to take advantage of some outstanding deals and offers.

“We have 500 stores and you can shop across categories ... people can modify their spending according to their budget.”

The centre is offering pre-Boxing Day sales including up to 30 per cent at Aje Athletica, 40 per cent off storewide at Tommy Hilfiger and up to 40 per cent off at Sheridan.

The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) anticipated Victorian consumers would spend $17.3 billion in the November to Christmas Eve trading period, up 1.2 per cent from last year.

But ARA chief executive Paul Zahra said the increase in expenditure was not by consumer choice, rather due to a string of cost of living factors driving up costs.

“The slight increase in spending this year is being inflated by unavoidable supply chain price increases, particularly in food, and an overall increase in Australia’s population,” he said.

“If you exclude these factors, overall Christmas spending is in decline. This makes for a competitive last week before Christmas amongst retailers, as traders compete for a smaller pool of discretionary spend.”

Commonwealth Bank of Australia personal finance expert Jess Irvine also noticed consumers were “more price sensitive” and on alert for discounts and deals following interest rate rises.

“Aussie household budgets are being squeezed on multiple fronts, so it is not surprising that individual shoppers are tightening their belts,” she said.

Meanwhile, Melbourne’s CBD is also expected to be busy with last minute Christmas shoppers.

Melbourne Central centre manager Denis Ryan said the centre continued to be the leading Christmas retail destination in Melbourne’s CBD, with more than 3m visitors coming through its doors in December.

“With our extended trading hours in the lead up to Christmas and on Boxing Day, shoppers can visit the centre at a time that is convenient for them this festive season while exploring the biggest range of flagship brands in the city,” he said.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp said the festive season was the most important time of the year for traders, with the City of Melbourne’s Christmas festival attracting 1.4m people and pumping $13m into the economy every year.

“The city is abuzz with the festive vibe, as huge crowds flock to Melbourne to shop and celebrate,” Cr Capp said.

“More than 15,000 people on the nice list have visited Santa at his new workshop location in Howey Place – up more than 20 per cent from last year.

“We’ve also seen shopping activity at Bourke Street Mall even busier than last year, proving again that Melbourne is the shopping capital of the state.

“We’re delighted that so many people are enjoying all that Melbourne has to offer during the festive period.”

Originally published as Christmas spending up in Victoria from last year — but not for reason you think