WESTERN BUREAU – Some retailers across western Jamaica whose businesses have been taking a battering in recent months due to the coronavirus pandemic say they are experiencing an uptick in sales over the Yuletide season, while others are frantically clinging on to the hope that there will be a spike in shopping today.  

Chairman for Trelawny Chamber of Commerce steering committee, Shellion Rhoden, told the Jamaica Observer West that despite sluggish business in the parish, her members are feverishly clinging on to hopes that there will be an uptick in sales at the eleventh hour.

“Everybody is saying it’s slow, but they are hanging on in there as much as they can. But it is what it is. There is nothing much that they can do but to hang on in there. They are just hoping for last-minute shopping. They also have to contend with restricted business hours as a result of the curfew, but nevertheless they are making do with what they have,” said Rhoden.

 President of the Westmoreland Chamber of Commerce, Moses Chybar, said yesterday that even though business was a little better than earlier in the year, the new curfew hours has contributed to the snail’s pace at which Christmas sales are unfolding across the parish.

“Business operators are really struggling and expressing concern because what they would have expected to enjoy and experience during this festive season are people shopping. They are not seeing anything near that because the pandemic would have affected everything. But, outside of that, the extended hours of the curfew makes it really difficult. Persons would sometimes shop after work and given the limited hours that we have, persons are struggling,” argued Chybar.

The parish of Westmoreland was recently placed under tighter curfew hours due to a surge in the number of cases of coronavirus there. The curfew hours in that western parish runs from 7:00 pm to 5:00 am daily until December 31, while for other parishes the hours are between 10:00 pm and 6:00 am daily.

Chybar noted that although the business community understands that the Government is trying to strike a balance in containing the spread of the virus, the feedback from the community is that, “they (Government) never had to cut the hours to seven o’clock and if it is that illegal parties, bars and so forth are the issue, then pose further restrictions on them rather than generally across the board.”

Over in St James, president of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Janet Silvera, says there are signs of an uptick in commercial activities. 

“Shopping is happening, people are doing their Christmas shopping. Most of the merchants are reporting very good responses from consumers. Everywhere you go there are long lines. I can tell you that people are shopping,” Silvera said.

Montego Bay vendor Dean Kelly, who sells face masks, among other items, expressed similar sentiments.

“Business is picking up and you find most people wearing masks now. I sell masks, handkerchiefs, gloves and such, and I see it picking up,” Kelly said.

For Anthony Pearson, managing director of Lloyd’s Department Store in Montego Bay, Christmas sales are slowly building up.

“Business picking up but not like the good old times, not even close. There is some extra activity without a doubt, but I don’t know…there is still a few days to go and we hope for the best but there is a very marginal increase. But we give thanks for the little we are getting,” Pearson told the Observer West on Tuesday. 

On the other hand, Gul Choithramani of Parade Mart, also in Montego Bay, is bemoaning the pedestrian pace at which sales are going at his establishment despite price cuts on most items since Black Friday.

  “We hope there is improvement over the last two days before Christmas. We have dropped the prices so people can afford to buy; we have dropped the price a lot,” he told the Observer West, earlier this week.

President of the Hanover Chamber of Commerce Garey Whittaker said that while business is not as brisk like previous years, there is a general uptick in activity over the last couple of days. He too is optimistic that there will be a marked increase in sales today.