The thrill is gone from Boxing Week shopping, Saskatoon residents say

Christmas has come and gone for most people, but the shopping hype continues as some get out of the house to take in the post-Christmas scene.

Some local retailers like McQuarries Tea and Coffee Merchants saw busy sales leading up to Christmas, but there is a shift now.

“So today is our first day back at work after taking the 25th and 26th off, and it is slow. I think a lot of people are prepared already,” McQuarries’ Kim Rashley-Anton told CTV News.

The other reason they say, could’ve been that with the postal strike some were opting for in-person buying.

McQuarries Tea and Coffee Merchants doesn't rely on seasonal sales discounts, but staff have noticed a lull in foot traffic, post-Christmas. (Carla Shynkaruk / CTV News)

The shopping culture seems to have changed, according to one group that was out and about Friday.

“Everyone I've spoken to is a bit more aware of just the whole emptiness of just purchasing things and, like the original message of Christmas having been lost, kind of thing,” according to Alexa Garside.

Garside and two friends weren’t shopping but heading to a yoga class on Broadway Avenue. They say between Black Friday and now Boxing Day-turned-Week, they’ve had enough.

“Just feels like there's a constant sale now, doesn't it? It just feels like. I do feel like because we're all being a bit more aware of wasting things and that consumerist part of Christmas,” Garside said.

Merv Smith opened Healthy Living Bistro this past year, right next door to the business he’s owned for decades, Western Fitness Equipment on Broadway. This is the first Christmas for the bistro, so he has no comparison, but he says on the fitness equipment side he has seen online sales seriously affect his Christmas sales. He’s still counting on New Year’s resolutions to help bring in more customers.

“Well, traditionally on the equipment side, it's after Christmas and maybe with New Year's resolutions, and people are back from holidays. It picks up,” Smith told CTV News.

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Smith says Black Friday didn’t help him much either, which was also the case at McQuarries, which didn’t have any pre-Christmas Black Friday sales. But because of the nature of their business, they anticipate the next few days will be busy.

“Well typically, we have strong sales in [the] New Year because people like to bring tea or coffee somewhere or if they're going out for dinner,” Rashley-Anton said.

Shopper Jan Corcoran was out on Broadway, but only because she had to be.

“It's my husband's birthday tomorrow. Do I know what I'm getting him? No! We just finished Christmas, you know?”

While the concept of Boxing Day shopping likely isn’t going anywhere, whether it’s causing the buzz it once did doesn’t seem so certain.