Shoppers return but miss having a place for a cuppa

It may have been a combination of the weather, or some businesses not having the necessary safety precautions in place to open, but for the first few shopping hours on Friday the city centre was still rather eerie.

As morning became afternoon and the rain eased, footfall improved, but it was clear that there is a long, long way to go before Belfast is back at its buzzing best.

Several shoppers who spoke to the News Letter believed it was vital to get cafes, bars and restaurants up and running again as they went hand-in-hand with the success of shops.

Carol Hill from Woodvale said: “We’ve been to Dunnes and I’ve been in to pay a bill at the Nationwide. I’ve been coming into Belfast quite regularly so I can pay my bills, it’s the only way I can pay them by coming into the city. I wouldn’t say it’s that handy.

“What I really need now is somewhere to sit down and get a coffee. Unfortunately I don’t think there’s anywhere open.

“That’s a big thing that’s missing, having somewhere to go and sit down, take the weight off your feet in between shops.”

Having walked roughly three laps of the city centre the News Letter could not see anywhere to get a hot drink, takeaway or otherwise. In terms of food outlets, the vast majority were shut with the exception of KFC and Tribal Burger who were offering a take away service via a hatch.

Like Carol, a lot of shoppers were attracted to Dunne’s Stores in Corn Market, which has re-opened with the exception of its food department. As the rain bucketed down yesterday morning it was one of the few stores that had queues outside. The store was operating a one-way system letting people in via High Street and out via Corn Market.

Top Shop in Victoria Square – where a one-way system was also in operation – also had a steady footfall though a lot of clothes shops such as Zara and Primark remained closed.

Most banks and building societies had moderate queues while it appeared that many non-essential shops had been told they were allowed to open but weren’t going to rush things.

One small business owner spoke briefly to say he would wait until at least Monday until he was sure all measures were in place to ensure customer safety.

In terms of toilet provision, one young mother said she was initially pleased to find that the toilets in Victoria Square were open, but upon entering felt very uncomfortable as there was someone waiting right outside the cubicle to clean the area as soon as she exited.

Jim and Joan Leckey from east Belfast said they had been coming into Belfast around once a week since lockdown.

Jim, who is 87, said: “It seems to be getting busier. Although they’ve opened some more shops I think the rain hasn’t helped. It’s slow but it’s getting back to normal.”

Joan said: “We live at the beginning of the Newtownards Road, it’s as handy to get on the bus and come down here as anything.

“We’ve been going to the bigger stores like Debenhams and Marks and Spencers. There’s definitely some bargains to be had.”

Paddy McAleer from north Belfast said he hadn’t been looking forward to yesterday’s trip into the city centre: “It was my wife Anne who wanted to come in, I was dreading it. I was expecting the shops to be queued out the doors but there’s been no queues at all anywhere we’ve went. The strange thing is even though there isn’t that many people about it’s still very hard to get parked.”

He added: “We’ve come out with bags of stuff from Dunne’s. There’s a lot of stuff reduced. I got a new jacket that was £40 right down to a fiver.”

Lifting his four carrier bags from the department store, he commented: “This is what happens when you retire.”

l Morning View, page 10