It is not how many come ? it?s how much they spend.

Luxury liner has put a wind in the sails of Bermuda retailers by bringing in a higher class of clientele.

Although thepassengers are few in number compared to other cruise ships, they have larger wallets and are more likely to dip into them.

It means not only are these big-pocketed visitors spending more to come here, they are also pepping up the local economy.

Top retailer David Hamshere is one of those who has heard his tills ringing to the sound of this newer breed of classy tourist.

?There has been a definite boost in sales,? he told .

Calypso group general manger Pierre Dutoya has seen a similar boost.

?Cruise ship passengers are low-spenders; you only have about ten percent who have the tendency to spend money on more than one t-shirt, mug or other souvenir.

?But the tends to have more up-scale customers who are spending better, whereas the regular ships carry more middle class and lower class, which doesn?t bring real money.?

The Radisson Cruise line?s has been visiting the Island for just two years.

Mr. Joe Simas ? the manager of Radisson Cruises? local agent Meyer Shipping ? said thecarried a maximum of 500 passengers, while most other ships took close to 1,500.

?Every cabin on the ship is a suite with a private outside balcony,? said Mr. Simas.

Luxury carries a price, of course. The increased space in themeans passengers pay twice as much as those on other weekly cruise ships.

Mr. Hamshere ? managing director of Tess Ltd which owns Aston & Gunn, The English Sports Shop, the Crown Colony Shop, Marks & Spencer, Archie Brown, and Cecile?s among others ? has reaped the rewards of the coming into Hamilton over the weekend.

?(The ship) certainly reflects the highest quality visitor we get off of the cruise ships. The rest of the cruise ship (passengers) are certainly spending but not to the same extent that the (passengers) do.?

Sales through the end of June at Tess Ltd. were running ahead of last year, according to Mr. Hamshere, which he credited to the retailers? willingness to accommodate the customer.

?We?re willing to operate with more extended hours. For example, we close at 6 p.m. instead of 5.30 p.m., and we do the Harbour Night.?

Mr. Dutoya also doffed a hat to the mega-ship in Dockyard. ?The mega-ship tends to have much younger but higher spenders because when you?re young, you spend more.

?The mega-ship is an amusement park like Disneyworld.?

Mr. Dutoya reported that sales at the Calypso Group?s stores ? which includes Benetton, Calypso, French Connection, Long Champ, Max Mara and Voil? ? were on par with last year.

?The problem with Bermuda is that it is a faded product, so until we make a major investment in capital, the clientele will remain the same.?

But Mr. Dutoya assured that the Calypso Group?s stores had ?always been very good with the locals?.

?We have the product that the customer wants.?discovered that such a feeling seemed widespread among retailers who depended on the local population more than the tourist market.

The Gibbons Company?s retail manager and buyer Paula Clark said: ?The summer season has been extremely strong, as it has been all through the year. We have the right merchandise at the right time and the right price, and our customers are responding to it.?

Zameer Baksh, the owner of and buyer for The Edge, a ?contemporary menswear? boutique in The Washington Mall, said that business had ?always been on an increase? over the 14 years of the shop?s existence, and this season was no different.

The store?s clientele was 99 percent local, and Mr. Baksh said he did not buy for the tourist trade. Mr. Baksh said he felt the store?s worldly merchandise and competitive prices led to its success. However, at such stores as A.S. Cooper & Sons Ltd. a good tourism season has great effects.

Operations manager Somers Cooper attributed June?s boost in sales at the company?s main store on Front Street to the increased number of tourists in the summer months. Said Mr. Cooper: ?June was a great month; that had a lot to do with the hotels being full and the Newport to Bermuda race.?

While the arrival of thehas been a positive factor, retailers know there is no substitute for good service.

Mr. Hamshere is one who underlines the importance of this old-fashioned virtue.

?We?re making an effort to ensure that the people who come into our stores are given good service. Our Cecile shop, as an example, is doing very well. That?s the high end of the business, and it?s certainly holding its own.?

With making 14 scheduled visits to Bermuda this season, retailers hope the high level of sales will continue.