Sales of Christmas trees cheer sellers

THEY form the centrepiece of Christmas celebrations, adding festive sparkle and smells familiar to us all.

And, although many traditions will have to be cast aside this year due to the pandemic, the Christmas tree is proving more popular than ever.

Sellers across Tayside are predicting their most successful season in years, with early sales already “significantly higher” than usual.

It mirrors a UK-wide trend, with businesses reporting a boom in tree sales and some predicting that a total of 10 million could be bought this year – two million more than normal.

Broughty Ferry businessman Ross Turriff, owner of Turriff’s Garden Centre, said he had already seen “strong early sales.”

He added: “Tree sales usually tend to swing back and forth from year to year, but it looks like it’s going to be solid for us this year.

“Mind you, I don’t think it’s going to be the new toilet rolls. I’m sure we won’t have to limit them to four per customer.”

The garden shop owner believes that this year’s lockdown has played a part in the increased popularity of festive trees.

He said: “I think folk are really keen to make their homes a bit more festive this year, they want things to be extra special.

“Trees bring in that sight and smell which really cheers you up, and with a real tree you have a lot of individuality.

“I think that after a long time and a harder year people want that kind of thing – everyone just wants to decorate and have a nice home at this time of year.”

Ross and his team have also seen a boost in online sales, with some customers choosing to order trees delivered directly to their doors.

“Another point that may be worth mentioning is that as well as strong over-the-counter sales, our online sales have also been really, really strong,” he said.

“That’s mainly from people that don’t want to browse or can’t visit from Angus and would prefer us to contactless deliver.”

Other sellers in the area have also had success, such as Adam Robinson of Tayside Forestry.

He said: “It’s definitely been noticeable – I think that this is probably the biggest opening weekend we’ve had in years.

“A lot of people seem to be looking for live trees which is great.

“We’re usually quite busy anyway, but it definitely feels like this year is even bigger and busier.

“I feel that being at home is making people want to get into Christmas earlier, like right at the start of December – we just want to get going with it.

“I think that when people are sat at home all day doing their work they want to brighten the place up and have some more festivities going on, it makes things a lot nicer for people.

“Having one is also going to cheer you up a bit if you’re sat in the house.

“It’s really just a bit of fun after what has been a very stressful year for so many of us.

“I think that British people, no matter what happens, are very good at saying that Christmas is definitely happening.

“It’s not something that we ever want to cancel.”

Adam Robinson says business is good at Tayside Forestry.