“A good Christmas overall” – this seems to be the general comment from shop owners, although some retailers told this newspaper that they had expected better results, after very good sales in October and November.

Now that the rush of Christmas shopping is over, some retail outlets have chosen to keep up the momentum by introducing early sales, so people still went shopping on Boxing Day and yesterday, some to change items they had received as gifts and others to benefit from the first sales.

Some clothes shop owners who spoke to The Malta Independent yesterday said that they had had a very good Christmas, but they had still slashed prices by up to 70 per cent.

Even Malta Chamber for Small and Medium Enterprises (GRTU) director-general Vince Farrugia said last Friday that it was proving to be a good Christmas for the business community, but a number of factors, including a very mild-autumn, have contributed to the need for clothes shops to off-load their winter stock.

Many people tend to wait for the post-Christmas sales before they buy clothes, so a number of shop owners feel the need to introduce sales as soon as people have finished their Christmas shopping.

While some shop owners in Valletta to whom this newspaper spoke yesterday said they had had a normal Christmas, others said they had expected something better, but overall it was positive.

As far as New Year celebrations are concerned, changing trends in the way people celebrate and amuse themselves appear to be contributing to mixed reactions from entertainment outlets and restaurants in the run-up to New Year celebrations. However, they are cautiously optimistic, hoping that last-minute bookings will do the trick, according to sources close to The Malta Independent.

Last week, GRTU director-general Vince Farrugia told this newspaper that people are increasingly choosing home entertainment, and the increasing variety of products offered in shops is also a determining factor in this respect.

And understandably, as it is becoming very popular to entertain guests at home and people want variety. Going to the same huge parties year after year tends to become a bore for some people, and such events will possibly be less popular this year, since The Sense Group has pronounced itself against the sponsorship of open-bar events at a pre-paid price.

These parties, which are normally popular among the younger generation – those who are less likely to entertain each other at their own homes – will therefore be “replaced” by bar entertainment.

Mr Farrugia explained that people are also after quality, so home entertainment for the “older” generation is based on people purchasing luxury food from retail outlets, and cooking also forms part of the whole entertainment process.

One wonders, however, if entertaining at home is the real reason why fewer people are going to parties or making bookings at bars and restaurants?

As happens with Christmas shopping, last-minute bookings have become part of our culture, and one can never know for sure whether the entertainment business will be below average this year.

The GRTU will be publishing the result of their surveys later, but what is undoubtedly a fact is that the ever-increasing variety in the type of entertainment from which people can choose is one of the main contributing factors to the “mixed reactions”. It is possible that the share of profits this year will be less concentrated among the big party-organisers and the owners of restaurants and bars.