Leeds shopper queued for more than two hours to be first in line for Primark re-opening

The directors of both Trinity Leeds and the White Rose Centre said the first day back at work for almost three months had been a success.

After weeks of planning and drawing up new guidelines and protocols to comply with social distancing, the tills at high street favourites were ringing again.

Early indications show that of all the centres managed by Landsec, which includes Westgate at Oxford and Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth, Trinity was one of the best performers.

Trinity Leeds, Centre Director, David Maddison said the busiest shops were the Apple Store, Next, Boots and Primark.

Speaking as the shopping day drew to a close he told the Yorkshire Evening Post: "Trinity has been really successful in comparison to all our centres. We are up there with the front runners and we are really pleased about that. I have been here since 7am and it has been non-stop. We had queues, particularly for Primark first thing this morning and they are still queuing now.

"It is great to see and great to get back to retail. When I was driving to work I had a smile on my face thinking we are getting back to what we should be doing. We are playing the game today."

Around 60 per cent of the units were open with the ones remaining closed being ones that are not allowed to re-open yet such as bars and restaurants.

Mr Maddison added that he expects footfall to increase steadily as customer confidence increases and that there will be a second phase of shoppers when the food and drink outlets open again.

Over at the White Rose Centre it was a similar picture.

The centre opened at 9am and the first person in line for Primark was waiting outside at 6.45am. Zara and Sports Direct were among the other shops that were proving most popular with shoppers.

Steven Foster, centre director, said: "It has been a great day. I am delighted to say that the re-opening has gone really well. We have got 60 per cent of all our units open and we are really pleased to see so many people want to support retailers."

While some stores in White Rose, such as Sainsbury's, have remained open throughout lockdown, there has been planning for yesterday's re-opening of non-essential shops but Mr Foster says it is only in real life that you can see how it will work.

There have been one way systems in place at both centres, barriers for queuing outside shops and staff from retailers and each centre directing shoppers and keeping them informed about waiting times.

Mr Foster said the wait didn't deter shoppers who were keen to go out again and physically see products before purchasing them and signs were that yesterday signified the start of retail recovery.

He added: "A lot of retailers have been really looking forward to re-opening again and we are trying to give people reassurance to come back. They want to come out and see the product and we have had a real mix of shoppers from young families to couple and elderly people.

"It is the start of a recovery for retailers. We are off to a really good start and let's hope it continues for the rest of the week."