Shopping picking up as Christmas gets closer
SIBU: The number of Christmas shoppers is gradually growing as the annual festival celebrated by Christians gets nearer.
Hua Ing General Store proprietor David Lau noted that some of his customers started to shop for Christmas as early as the beginning of November.
“Many go for the Christmas trees.
“Those (trees) around five feet in height have the most takers,” he said, rationalising that a Christmas tree of that size was more portable.
“They can just carry it away on a motorcycle,” he added.
Lau sells a six-foot tall Christmas tree for RM65 while a five-foot one goes for RM55.
“The smaller Christmas trees are priced around RM35,” he said, disclosing that he sourced the trees from China.
However, there are not many takers for Christmas cards.
Lau explained: “Advancement in information technology has made sending of greeting cards obsolete. People send their season’s greetings via handphone now.”
Nevertheless, Christmas greeting cards are still available in many stores. The buyers are mostly senior citizens who used to send greeting cards during their younger days and perhaps continue to do so out of nostalgia.
As for what people think of Christmas celebrations, Alex Junior said it was a good occasion to foster racial harmony.
The 25-year- old said he had many friends who are not of the same race as he is.
“But, we always come together to celebrate the festival,” he said.