Calgarians flock to malls for Boxing Day deals – and a break from the cold

Calgarians eager to cash in on Boxing Day deals streamed into malls and shopping centres across the city on Friday.

For some shoppers, it was a chance to snag discounts. For others, it was an opportunity to get out of the house and spend time with family amid freezing temperatures this holiday season.

At Southcentre Mall in the city’s south, Tim Gordon was just getting his shopping day underway with his two teenage daughters, waiting on a couch as they grabbed caffeinated drinks at a nearby Starbucks. Gordon said he was on the hunt for a new TV and deals on clothing, with stops at stores like Boathouse on the agenda.

“It’s all the money you don’t have left after Christmas, but you end up spending more because it’s too good a deal to pass up,” he said.

Gordon said his family does most of their holiday shopping online these days, but makes a point of visiting the mall after Christmas to check out in-store deals. And while the sales were the main draw, Gordon said the family outing was also a welcome break after several cold days spent indoors.

“It’s nice to get out with them and just putz around while they look at stuff,” he said.

For retailers, the influx of Boxing Day shoppers was a familiar sight.

Brenda Paul, a sales associate at Hickory Farms, said the morning started slow for the holiday kiosk but picked up as the day went on.

“We get busier in the afternoons,” she said, noting that Boxing Day and the week leading up to Christmas are the shop’s busiest days.

With everything at the kiosk marked down 50 per cent, Paul said much of the remaining stock had already been sold by 11 a.m. Between customers, she worked to restock shelves with large red gift boxes to keep displays looking full.

Despite the surge in foot traffic, Paul said she enjoys the busy pace of the day.

“I enjoy working with the people,” she said. “We have our regular customers and new customers that have never had the product before. . . (I’m) very excited for them.”

At Twisted Goods, a cottage chain gift shop with locations in Alberta and Saskatchewan, manager Ivy Younge said shoppers were already lining up when she arrived for the store’s 8 a.m. opening.

“Even when I was parking this morning, there were lots of people coming in to line up for other stores, too,” she said.

“Today’s been really good. Everyone’s in a great mood, and everyone’s looking for those nice little deals.”

The store was offering 50 per cent off Christmas items and 10 per cent off everything else – discounts Younge said are rare for the small business.

She added that foot traffic felt stronger this year compared to recent years, with many customers drawn in by Boxing Day promotions on the store’s social media accounts.

“There’s quite a few people who . . . come in specifically because of the sales, or they’re interested in some of our larger items that they can’t normally get on sale.”

In recent years, Younge said there’s been growing pressure on retailers to extend Boxing Day sales beyond a single day, with many chains launching “Boxing Week” promotions or starting discounts early. She said keeping up with that shift can be challenging for smaller businesses.

“We have to wait till (Boxing Day) because we’re a tiny little business,” she said, adding the store now extends its sales through the weekend in response to customer expectations.

“We switched because so many stores were doing (sales) for so long, and people would come and be like, ‘You don’t have any sales on today?’ because we’d only do it on the one day.”

Among the shoppers were Rhys Claver and Daphne Xithalis, who came prepared to spend mall gift cards they received over the holidays.

Claver said he doesn’t often come to the mall to shop, but was surprised by the savings.

“I bought shoes a lot cheaper than I would have expected – something like 30 or 40 bucks off the original sticker price,” he said. “We (have) the day off; might as well use it trying to find something to buy.”

For Xithalis, a Toronto resident visiting Calgary for the holidays, Alberta’s lower sales tax was an added bonus.

“We have 13 per cent in Ontario,” she said. “It’s nice to go to a store and you expect something higher, and you’re like, ‘Oh, wait, it’s only (five per cent GST).’

“It really saves you money just coming over here.”