As the countdown to Christmas continues, businesses in Princes Town are pleased that the pace of sales is picking up.

When Newsday visited businesses in the area on Friday, PS Tots and Teens Toddler 2 owner Paul Sookraj said sales were slow in November but have been improving in the last two weeks.

Sookraj told Newsday, “Things have been slowly picking up and we’re grateful for that.

“People will say it’s slow because it had a lot of (foot) traffic before covid. But you can’t compare then to now.”

A manager at RizTech Distributors Ltd, who did not want to be named, predicts sales will increase even more when people get paid.

[caption id="attachment_928950" align="alignnone" width="1024"] A woman looks at Christmas tree decorations in Princes Town on Friday. - Marvin Hamilton[/caption]

He told Newsday, “By us, we haven’t seen a drop in sales when compared to this same time last year.

“But from early December, until people get paid for Christmas, it’s usually slow. So we’re expecting things to pick up around then.”

A manager at The Orient Ltd said it would be unrealistic for businesses to expect sales to be as they were before the pandemic. Instead, she said businesses should be grateful people are still spending despite the economic circumstances.

“We just have to be thankful that certain people are still try to shop and enjoy the season because they are not sure what the next year will bring.”

Three weeks ago, online store Sweet Solutions/Sunflower Boutique Works opened a physical boutique at JDs Mall.

A worker said while online sales continue to outpace the boutique, its owners remain hopeful that sales will increase in the next two weeks.

She added, “It’s been a bit slow but we think the two, three days before Christmas there’ll be people.”

During Newsday’s visit to the area, police officers were on patrol and keeping a watchful eye.

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