12:34pm UK, Monday December 27, 2010
Crowds of shoppers lined the high street before first light today as retailers slashed their prices in the Christmas sales.
Shoppers in London's Oxford Street looking for bargains in the Christmas sales
Queues formed outside Harrods department store and on Oxford Street in central London as early as 6am.
Harrods and John Lewis opened their doors for the time since Christmas Eve after staying closed on Boxing Day.
Shopping centres and high streets across Britain were packed yesterday despite only being open for six hours because of Sunday trading laws.
With VAT going up from 17.5% to 20% on January 4, many bargain hunters have been eyeing pricier items such as electronic goods and furniture.
Shoppers in London had to contend with a 24-hour Tube strike, but crowds still descended on the West End where prices were slashed by up to 70%.
Glen Barkworth, Arndale Centre in ManchesterThere's some significant offers on high-ticket merchandise, plasma and flat screen TVs selling for under 400 - silly prices!
Other people opted to browse for items in the comfort of their homes to avoid the freezing weather.
The Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG) believes Boxing Day spending online could have topped £300m for the first time.
John Lewis reported a 25% increase in visits to its website on Christmas Day with sales going up by 45%.
When Selfridges in Oxford Street opened its doors for trade at 11am more than 8,000 people were waiting outside, compared to 2,000 last year.
Women's handbags and shoes were best selling categories, taking more than £1.2m in the first three hours.
A group of young shoppers in York
The Arndale Centre in Manchester reported "phenomenal" trading, with more than 150,000 people passing through its doors.
Glen Barkworth, general manager, said: "There's some significant offers on high-ticket merchandise, plasma and flat screen TVs selling for under £400 - silly prices!
"With VAT increasing in a few days' time the retailers are gearing themselves up to take advantage, they have purchased in bulk and the public are willing to buy."
A spokesman for Bluewater in Greenhithe, Kent, said it was expecting over 900,000 shoppers by January 1.
Capital Shopping Centres, which manages malls including Lakeside in Thurrock, Essex, and Metrocentre in Gateshead, said customers had been "flooding through" the doors of its 13 centres.
Some of the 8,000 who queued up outside Selfridges in central London
Despite the Christmas sales bonanza, most stores and shops are expecting a fall in business in the New Year.
A survey for the British Retail Consortium found that two thirds of retailers expected sales to decline in 2011.
They blame the increase in VAT and fears over the economy as government spending cuts begin to have an impact.
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