Early risers bag sales bargains

Bargain hunter Dharan Birdi and daughter Shelena were horrified to discover four people already waiting when they got to the Next store in Wolverhampton's St Johns Retail Park three hours before the 5am sale started.

The 47-year-old father of three, a factory worker from Goldthorn Park, said: "I felt sure we would be first in line."

That honour went to a woman with a deck chair and sleeping bag who declined to be named but was rewarded with a bottle of champagne by shop staff.

More than 500 sales crazy shoppers poured into shop as it opened for business and within five minutes the children's wear section was so full that it had to be temporarily closed. The flow of customers into the store was carefully controlled for the next hour. The car park, normally dark and deserted at 5am, was full to capacity. People queued from the store, out of the retail park and onto the pavement alongside the city's Ring Road.

Identical scenes were happening at Next stores across the West Midlands, together with Marks and Spencer stores which opened at 6am.

Winter sales veteran Diane Browne, a 47-year-old mother of two from Penn, emerged from Next with £185 worth of jeans, handbags and coats while daughter Sarah, 16, snapped up scarfs and dressing gowns totalling £70 after previously identifying the goods she wanted on the internet.

Diane said: "We got here at 4.30 am and it was well worth the early start. This is the fourth year I have been to the winter sale here and it is always good value. My husband Nick thinks I'm mad – he is still fast asleep in bed."

Jane Leech, 42, from Coseley and daughters Donna, 20 and Emma, 16, shelled out over £350 on jeans, coats and shoes and reckoned to have saved more than that on the normal purchase price.

They joined the queue shortly after 4am and 90 minutes later were returning home with bags full of bargains. "It was more hectic than previous years but I would not miss it for the world," declared delighted Jane.

Stephen Hill, 39-year-old divorced engineering worker who lives in Penn estimated to have saved around £120 by spending £100 on shoes, jeans and tops and explained: "They were all cash purchases. I don't want anything on credit and think all the doom and gloom about the economy is more fiction than fact."

Alistair King, 26, from Tettenhall bought £75 worth of shirts and a jacket while girlfriend Kelly Moore, 22, of Penn thought that she had saved almost £100 by spending £47 on carefully picked jeans and tops.

Ian Riaar, from West Bromwich was among 100 people outside Marks & Spencer in the Merry Hill Shopping Centre in Brierley Hill when the sale started at 6 am and explained: "I'm usually up early to go to work so the early start doesn't bother me. I'm a bargain hunter, although I'm not looking for anything in particular."

Mother and daughter Claudia and Dominique Aniol, from Stourbridge confessed: "We're both shopaholics and we love to get a bargain. We'll go home and have some breakfast in about an hour's time after we've spent all our money."

Around 3,500 bargain hunters queued up outside Next in The Bullring in Birmingham for the 5am opening in the biggest queue seen in the city. Doormen have been controlling the crowds operating a one in one out policy.

Bullring marketing controller Louise Hamer-Brown expected 240,000 shoppers today compared with the 181,000 people turned up for the sales yesterday.

"Of course we're very happy," she said."It's all been good natured, there are some regular customers who come every year, and of course there are some new ones so it's going well."

Around 30 people were queueing outside Next Clearance in West Bromwich this morning waiting for it to open at 8am.By 9am there were around 200 cars on the car park.

Bargain hunter Gaynor Blunn, aged 44, from Stone Cross said: "It's very busy in here but not manic.

"I have picked up some great bargains. Tops are just £3. I've spent £22 for items worth £60."