Some think it’s “absolute madness” while others just love getting their sales shopping started on Boxing Day – this is how it all played out at the Trafford Centre and Manchester city centre this yearBoxing Day at the Trafford Centre was hectic (Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)

While many were still tucked up in bed on Boxing Day, thousands of others were heading out to prove the early bird catches the worm in the seasonal sales across Greater Manchester.

Shop doors began opening at 7.30am at The Trafford Centre, which saw the biggest crowds and biggest queues outside stores. The frenzy only grew as Boxing Day went on at the vast shopping mall, with the 10,000 spaces in the car parks outside almost all full by lunchtime.

It was a somewhat more subdued start in Manchester city centre, where the doors opened at the Arndale Centre at 8am, and there was a fairly quiet start. It was beauty store Lush that attracted the biggest crowds in the city centre, as well as at the Trafford Centre, with shoppers eager to get their hands on their Christmas gift sets at half their original price.

The store had so many people waiting outside at the Arndale that staff had to use cordons to keep the queues under control. Manchester Store manager Chloe Dudek said the shop is always popular at this time of year.

The queue for Lush at the Arndale(Image: MEN)

She said: “Lush is definitely the busiest store in the Arndale today. I think it’s so busy because people love our products, but we do have quite a high price point sometimes. So people get gift cards at Christmas and save them for the Boxing Day sale to stock up for the year.

“I’d say so far this morning I’ve easily seen 300 people myself, but it’ll probably be in the thousands by the end of the day. Footfall this year has been pretty normal for us – we’re busy every Boxing Day. I think it’s the products and the discounts. People just love us – the smells, the atmosphere.

“We’re a staple part of a lot of people’s Christmases. Everyone gets a Christmas bath bomb, that kind of thing. Snow Fairy especially – it comes out at Christmas and it’s always the first thing to go.”

At the Trafford Centre, Lush shop workers said they’d “never seen it so busy on Boxing Day”, with a queuing system set up across the day. Queues also formed outside Zara, Superdrug and Selfridges as they prepared to open the doors – with big rushes to get in once the shutters opened.

The queue to get in Selfridges on Boxing Day(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)

In contrast many MEN readers took to our Facebook page to say they couldn’t understand why people would want to head out to busy shopping centres on Boxing Day.

Philips Deales said: “I’m still at home in the warm and not even got dressed. There is no way I’d think about going to a place like that till mid January.”

Kristian Newmar added: “Why can’t people relax at home, we do live in such a material world, I am glad that some places are staying closed cos staff need a nice break from work.”

Marie Sixsmith added: “I could not think of anything worse than queueing up at the Trafford Centre on boxing day morning! Absolute madness.”

Big crowds out across Boxing Day at the Trafford Centre(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)

Others were quick to defend the Boxing Day shopping tradition. Alice Summers wrote on the MEN Facebook page: “I used to love the Boxing Day sales at the Trafford Centre. My daughter and I used to queue early hours at Next.

“Loved Debenhams and Boots sale. Why? Our hard earned money went further in the sales. Everyone to their own, nothing sad about it. I love bargains.”

Shoppers could not resist some of the big discounts in stores like JD(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)

Shoppers were lured out with the promise of big bargains at stores this year – with many offering 50pc off or more on previously full-priced goods.

That included at Trafford Centre shops like John Lewis, Urban Outfitters and Boots. Selfridges, which had some of the biggest queues, was offering big reductions on designer goods, with trainers, Ugg boots and handbags among the big hits on Boxing Day.

The huge JD store at the mall, the biggest in the world, saw frenzied scenes with many shoppers seen laden down with multiple boxes of trainers thanks to discounts of up to 70pc. For the shoppers who headed out early the lure of the Boxing Day sales was simple – bagging the best bargains.

JD was one of the most popular sales(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)

Liam Mendes said: “I’ve been here since 7am, love the sales.” Although he suggested: “Why can’t the shops be open till midnight tonight to ease the traffic?”

Mary Marsh, from Bolton, headed to the Trafford Centre at 8am with her two daughters. She said: “If you come early, you can park and get straight in. There’s been some brilliant bargains today.”

Some shoppers may have got more than they bargained for at the Trafford Centre though. Scores of cars were slapped with yellow parking tickets around the centre after parking on double yellow lines and on kerbs amid the traffic chaos on Boxing Day.

Parking tickets were being issues to motorists parking on double yellow lines and on kerbs in the packed car parks

Motorists have previously been warned by shopping centre bosses that traffic attendants will be monitoring poor parking across the Trafford Centre estate over the festive season.

The Trafford Centre is braced for an even busier day on Saturday, December 27, as two of its major retailers, Marks & Spencer and Next on Regent Crescent, will start their sales then after remaining closed on Boxing Day.