AS SOON as the Christmas day festivities are over and everyone has unwrapped mounds of presents, attention inevitably turns to the Boxing Day and post-Christmas sales. FLORA THOMPSON looks at how crowds of shoppers pile into stores in the hope of swapping something they did not necessarily warm to, or are on the lookout for gifts which did not materialise in their stocking at a fraction of the price.

HITTING the sales is a past time for many a family in the period in between Christmas and New Year.

It can be an enjoyable, almost relaxing shopping day if you are permitted to peruse the shelves, or it can be a stressful, exhausting scrum.

The draw has somewhat died down now sadly with the boom of internet shopping and all-year-round sale offers such as Black Friday, but there is still the tradition which many stick to.

In the 1990s the attraction of a sale hit its peak – especially in Brighton’s most prestigious department store.

Hanningtons was dubbed the Harrods of the city, employing more than 200 staff across 70 different departments. It dominated North Street for nearly 200 years, took record breaking Christmas takings and saw lines of shoppers stretch down the street waiting for the doors to open on Boxing Day.

The store was synonymous with quality, elegance and glamour and was the city’s oldest, largest and most diverse department store. The shop was set up by the family of Charles Smith Hannington, of Hurstpierpoint, whose son James Hannington was the first Anglican bishop of East Africa.

While the Brighton-based family established itself in the retail trade missionary James was killed in Uganda. The Bishop Hannington Memorial Church in West Blatchington, was built in 1938 to commemorate him.

A fire tore through the building in 1929 but it was restored. The shop remained in family ownership until the 1960s and subsequent owners ran the business in according to the principles of the Hannington family.

In the 1980s the vast department store found itself stuck in a time warp and despite revamps found itself competing with out-of-town rivals, lower prices and free parking. It eventually sold for more than £20 million.

Nevertheless it still attracted shoppers to its sales.

The festive season sees thousands of people still pile into Brighton and Hove’s shopping districts.

The independent stores in The Lanes continue to be an attraction all year round but particularly during the Christmas period for those on the hunt for individual and unique gifts for loved ones.

Shopping centre Churchill Square is ever expanding, with a large new look Topshop now open, and London Road and George Street, in Hove, grow in popularity.