Gumboots rush!

Big-freeze shoppers make a dash for wellies

SALES of wellies, thermal underwear and hot water bottles have soared across the borough in the big freeze.

Traders are reporting spikes in winter essentials such as soups, salt and cat litter over the last two days (6/7).

Supermarket group Asda reported sales of children’s wellies were up by 233 per cent in the last 48 hours.

Sales of thermal underwear rose by over 1,000 per cent, while cat litter, used by residents instead of grit, saw a 55 per cent hike.

Food products such as soup and takeaways have been proving the most popular with shoppers.

However, savvy shoppers in Oldham are refusing to panic buy products as temperatures tumble across the country.

And it seems hardy Oldhamers are refusing to get carried away with the winter woes and buying just enough to see them through.

Philip Thompson, Sainsbury’s Oldham store manager, said: “The store has been very busy so colleagues have been making a real effort to beat the weather and to deliver a fantastic service to our customers. Products like fresh soup, root vegetables and classic British ready-meals such as shepherd’s pie are proving really popular as people stock up on winter warmers to fight off the cold.”

An Asda spokeswoman said: “Customers and colleagues have been quite calm so our stores are well stocked.

“The weather isn’t having as big an impact as we first thought.”

She said deliveries were getting through to its Oldham stores but were taking a bit longer than normal.

Sub-zero temperatures have failed to hamper delivieries with big chains reporting minimal disruption.

Many stores are using contingency plans to ensure deliveries get through and shelves are fully stocked. A spokesman for Morrison’s said it was business as usual for them as all deliveries to stores in Oldham had arrived on time and staff had been able to get in to work.

A spokeswoman from Tesco said all its stores were open and operating as normal.

She said: “Customers have been anticipating the bad weather and stocking up on essentials.

“But we are not seeing panic buying and our delivery network is keeping stores stocked up.