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CHRISTMAS ABROAD

Christmas shopping practices vary widely from country to country in Europe, as do attitudes to the gifts themselves. “In the Latin countries, everything you buy for Christmas has to be in big boxes,” said Karl Kalcher, managing director of MindFolio, a research-oriented marketing consultant firm based in Henley-on-Thames, U.K. “But in countries like Germany, where people are concerned about [environmental] aspects, it’s very much the reverse.”

Germany’s stores remain closed on Sundays year-round, though Saturday shopping hours were extended to 8 p.m. last year.

In Sweden government tax repayments generate a shopping surge in late November, says Lars Pernebrink, director of retail management for Rodamco’s Nordic Countries division. And the traditional issuing of bonus paychecks on Dec. 20 generates heavy shopper traffic from then until Christmas Day.

Spain’s Christmas celebrations continue through the Festival of the Three Kings on Jan. 5, when shopping centers offer parades, and candy and gifts for children.

England’s retailers are turning the traditional Boxing Day holiday (Dec. 26) into a shopping day and the kickoff for post-Christmas sales. Hammerson’s Bullring, in Birmingham, will open on Boxing Day this year for the first time ever. “It’s a relatively new phenomenon for us,” said Vanessa Forster, director of retail asset management at Hammerson, a London-based development firm. “There used to be just one or two centers open, but this year it’s getting to be the norm,” she said. “Retailers do need to consider it for competitive reasons.”

— ST