THE Philippine Retailers Association (PRA)-Cebu Chapter has lauded the move of the government’s Covid-19 task force to allow mall establishments to hold sales events, saying this would boost consumer spending.

PRA Cebu Chapter president Chester Lim told SunStar Cebu that the resumption of sales activities is a great help for Cebuano retailers during these tough times, especially as Cebu’s industry-wide, the virtual Great Cebu Sale is about to end. The Great Cebu Sale will end its run on Oct. 31.

“The Great Cebu Sale was conducted due to the limitations of promotional sales inside the mall. The PRA welcomes this development allowing mall sales in areas under general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified GCQ provided that proper health protocols will still be observed (mandatory wearing of face mask and face shield, frequent hand washing, physical distancing and contact tracing),” he said.

The government on Friday, Oct. 16, announced that mall establishments are now allowed to mount promotional sales to increase foot traffic in their establishments.

At the height of the pandemic, malls postponed their sales and promotional events to lessen the risk of Covid-19 transmission as sales activities naturally attract more shoppers.

“The timing is right as the Great Cebu Sale will end on Oct. 31. This will help continue the momentum of more businesses as we are approaching the Christmas season. Hopefully, this last quarter will offset some of the losses incurred in the second and third quarter due to the lockdowns,” Lim said.

Department of Trade and Industry Assistant Secretary Asteria Caberte said the agency will make sure that proper protocols will be implemented during sale events and activities.

“Sales sponsors will sign an undertaking with us to strictly observe mandatory health protocols,” she said.

Malls and other similar establishments suffered losses, especially during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and modified ECQ as only a limited number of people were allowed to go out and only essential stores were allowed to open such as groceries and pharmacies.

Now, as more and more businesses are allowed to open, foot traffic inside malls is slowly returning even if some people remain in their homes due to the fear of the coronavirus. (JOB)