Things are looking up for many businesses this holiday season.

Retailers say they have seen a steady flow of traffic through their doors as more people are seeing the benefits of shopping locally.

Paula Clarke, the CEO of Gibbons Company, said the store was “very busy” in the lead-up to Christmas Day.

“There has been a lot of traffic in the stores and we knew this was going to happen so we have extended our hours,” she said.

“It’s difficult to compare this year to last year as there are only three weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, compared to four weeks last year, but we have been happy with sales so far.”

She said Gibbons Company has done a lot to capture the imaginations of shoppers — offering discounts and incentives, extending business hours and working to improve customer service.

“I have noticed that more people are shopping in Bermuda this year than in previous years, so from that point of view it’s very positive.

“I think people have finally recognised that it’s as cheap or cheaper to shop in Bermuda rather than overseas and we have definitely noticed that and have had tremendous customer feedback from a lot of the initiatives we have created for our customers.”

To ensure shoppers get all the last-minute goodies they need, the department store will be open today from 9.30am until 6pm.

Deborah Rance, the manager at Treats, described business as “steady”, but said the recession had impacted sales.

“We have been very grateful for the business we have had,” she said. “It has certainly been a steady Christmas season and we have had no complaints. We have been pleased.”

She said sales have been split equally between candy — which has become more popular as it gets closer to Christmas Day — and toys, which sell year round. Treats will be open today from 8am until 6pm.

The Phoenix Group of Stores, which includes Phoenix, Brown & Company and P-Tech, recorded an improvement in sales over last year.

There are more people in the stores and they are spending more, said the company’s president and CEO George Grundmuller.

“Last year the [general] election [on December 17] didn’t help,” he said. “It typically never helps with business.

“But definitely this year there seems to be a lot more optimism. We always offer extended hours, but [on Sunday] we took were open from 9am until 6pm. Today we are open from 7am until 7pm.”

Big sellers at Brown & Company this year have been the Body Shop line, as well as perfumes and jewellery. Beauty gift sets, Quality Streets chocolates and biscuits have been popular items for the holidays at Phoenix.

P-Tech opened a store within a store for Samsung products, and found that the tablets and watches have sold extremely well. The wireless speaker systems, known as Sonos, have also done well this season, Mr Grundmuller said.

Sports Locker manager Richard Boyle said sales for the season were off to a slow start this year, but over the past few days business has been doing very well.

Mr Boyle said: “Everyone spent their money at Black Friday, which meant the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday after were very slow days.

“Christmas [sales] didn’t show up until the last four or five days and shoppers have come out and everything has been very good.”

Popular items for this holiday have been Dr Martens shoes for girls and LeBron James’ Zoom Soldier sneakers.

Dawn Zuill, owner of women’s clothing shop Daisy’s and children’s store Daisy & Mac, also saw “fantastic” sales for Black Friday and a good amount of traffic in her stores over the past week.

“I think we have had a strong week leading up to Christmas and a very strong Black Friday, but I think overall we are on par with last year,” she said.

To entice last-minute buyers, there will be sales and promotions on today at both Mrs Zuill’s stores, which are open from 9am until 6pm.

Successful sales haven’t been limited to the City of Hamilton.

Sundee Faulkner, of Bermuda Clayworks in Dockyard, said she has been working longer hours than ever before, which might be a good indicator of great sales for the holidays.

She said: “I haven’t done the end-of-month figures yet, but I have been very busy this year.

“I do the customised house signs you see all over the Island and I got a lot of last-minute orders this year. On Friday I worked until midnight to get them done and the Friday before that I was here until 11pm.”

One new trend she has seen this year is people looking to paint their own pottery and make special gifts for their loved ones.

The store will be open today from 9am until 5pm, but people can request to pick up their orders later by phoning 234-5116.