Shoppers seek last-minute deals

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/11/2020 (1947 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeggers hit the malls in droves Wednesday afternoon for some last-minute holiday shopping.

Yes, you read that correctly.

Non-essential retail shops closed at the end of business on Remembrance Day, and there’s no telling when they could welcome customers back — all part of the Manitoba government’s shutdown to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

That created a major buzz as shoppers hit the ground running, a full six weeks before gift-giving season. Retailers were required to keep their doors locked between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., as per Manitoba’s Remembrance Day Act.

Admittedly, Amber Rinn was a reluctant customer at Kildonan Place.

“Last-minute Christmas shopping, stocking stuffers and other things I wouldn’t have been able to order online,” she said.

“The way the world is right now, if (retail) opens up in four weeks, that’s like just 10 days before Christmas. If I didn’t have kids, I wouldn’t be here. But there are things I have to get.

“I knew it would be busy. If I’m thinking, ‘I better get some stuff done,’ then other people are feeling the exact same way. I know it’s Remembrance Day — and we do take our time as a family to remember — but like everything, there’s only so many hours in the day.”

“My chest hurts being around this many people. It’s a different mindset completely from a year ago.” –Amber Rinn

Two hours into the shortened selling day, the mall in Transcona was a hectic spot, although far more people were stuck in lineups than actually inside stores as retailers limited the number of customer in their shops.

There didn’t appear to be a one-size-fits-all solution to social distancing, but maintaining order in a safe fashion seemed to be achieved.

Some customers looking for deals at Bath & Body Works, for example, waited nearly 30 minutes — biding their time in three separate lines — to snap up their body butters and scented candles. But no one was in much of a lather.

“I try to avoid malls in the first place. But I was surprised how busy it was today,” said Theresa, who didn’t want her last name used. “I got here pretty early, just after the mall opened. I’m basically done my Christmas shopping, but it was just the last few things. And not knowing when places will be open again, I gave in knowing I just had to be patient.”

Speaking through her mask, Rinn said she felt uneasy joining the crowds.

“My chest hurts being around this many people. It’s a different mindset completely from a year ago,” she said. “When I used to consider crowds it was like the Red River Ex, shoulder to shoulder. Now, going to a mall with a few hundred people, that’s stressful.

“There was no real sense of relaxing and enjoying the shopping experience. It was literally in and out.”–Wade Morfoot

At least one store manager said Wednesday’s crowds didn’t meet his expectations.

“It’s not as busy as I thought it would be in this mall. We were hoping for a big, big turnout. But I think people are reluctant to do it,” said Wade Morfoot, of Tip Top Tailors.

“We had a little bit of a rush when we first opened, people were just in and out to get what they needed, and that was it. There was no real sense of relaxing and enjoying the shopping experience. It was literally in and out.”

Morfoot said there’s plenty of uncertainty surrounding when the doors will reopen.

“We have contingency plans for e-commerce, but other than that I have no idea. Will it be four weeks or longer?” he said.

“It felt weird and wrong on at least four different levels for me. I’m ashamed that I did this today.”–Theresa

Theresa said honouring Canada’s fallen heroes has always been important to her, and she rarely ventures out on Remembrance Day unless it’s to a memorial service.

“It felt weird and wrong on at least four different levels for me,” she said. “I’m ashamed that I did this today.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell