Several businesses in the main shopping district were open for business yesterday as Guyanese continued to dig into their pockets to buy almost anything from toys, to furniture and even decorations.
There was a steady stream of shoppers making their way around city stores, despite the intermittent rains.
Several businesses said that this year was one of the best economically and praised the work of the Guyana Police Force in maintaining a safe and friendly shopping environment.
At Royal Jewel House, the manager said that this year gift sets and tri-colour jewelry were the objects of choice of shoppers at the store.
She said that this year, Christmas Eve shopping was not as expected and opined that because it was Sunday, many persons would have gone to church.
Dilip Kumar, of Dilip Variety Store, lamented that this year's Christmas season business was average, but could have been better.
He too said that because it was Sunday, the usual Christmas Eve shopping was a bit dismal, even though many persons braved the rains.
Along the pavement, vendors turned out in their numbers and set about belting out their special Christmas bargains.
There were no city constables to remove them and one vendor lamented that she could have been making much more sales had she been allowed to vend along the pavement.
“At least they should look at something to allow us to sell for a particular period, because this li'l sale does really do good, especially when some ah we does really find it hard fuh mek ends meet,” the vendor said.
Manager of Amanda's Costume Jewelry and Gift Centre, Natasha Alli, said that this year, business picked up late.
She added that this may have stemmed from the late payment of some workers.
“This year for some reason business took a long time to pick up and when it did it was not as compared to previous years,” Alli said.
Several of the store owners praised the work of the police, who apart from conducting street and vehicular patrol, were also regulating the flow of traffic at busy intersections.
Apart from store owners, stallholders in the Bourda and Stabroek municipal markets were also satisfied with the turnout of shoppers and the subsequent sales.
A few of them said that the fact that Christmas Eve was a Sunday may have prevented some shoppers from coming out. They opined that many shoppers might come out late in the evening if the rains permit.
Contacted yesterday, President of the Georgetown Chambers of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Gerry Gouveia, said that he maintains the view that this year's Christmas is a spring board for what is expected to happen next year.
He said that he was very excited going into the season.
“I have a bright outlook for Guyana next year. This year has been a tremendous year for Guyana and to end the year in this fashion is really encouraging,” Gouveia stated.
He added that the security provided by the police was “fantastic” and gave shoppers and in particular the business community, a real sense of security.