It's the flip side to the credit crunch . . bargains to be had!

IT'S the one silver lining to the doom and gloom of the credit crunch – as stores fight to attract shoppers back to the city centre, prices have been slashed.

For anyone who's got any money left, it's the perfect time for bargain hunting.

On Princes Street the chain stores have entered sale season long before Christmas. House of Fraser, HMV, Debenhams and Jenners are among those offering up to 70 per cent off goods, with Ann Summers cutting some prices by 75 per cent.

As utility prices rise, unemployment soars and the availability of credit shrinks, shops are bracing themselves for a bitter winter.

Fiona Moriarty, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: "We've had a reasonably successful 12 months but what we've seen in the last few months is customer confidence beginning to slip and retailers are doing everything they possibly can to try and ensure that shoppers get great value.

"It's actually a really good time to be a shopper at the moment because there are great bargains on the High Street. I would anticipate that you'll see this continue in the run up to Christmas – retailers want to do anything they can to keep footfall high."

On Princes Street, shoppers have been enjoying the sales, but most confessed to being more careful with their money than they were before the economic downturn.

Debbie Gunderson, 25, a Standard Life employee from Granton, took advantage of Debenhams' sale to buy a housewarming gift for a friend. She said: "I noticed the sale on and thought it is unusual for this time of year.

"They've got a lot of shoes in the sale, but I had to walk past because I've got no money. Not a lot of people have much spare cash at the moment but people still like to treat themselves and it's better if they can get a bargain."

Phil Marshall, 50, from Balerno, emerged from Debenhams with a bulging carrier bag. The Scottish Widows mail room worker said: "I got a pair of jeans, a shirt and a hat. I saved about £45 overall. I think people are more careful about what they're going in to buy – at least, I am. Before, I used to go in and pick up whatever I wanted, now you're checking it out a bit more."

Elizabeth Bryson, 78, from Dalkeith, was off to meet her daughter and look at the sales.

She said: "I think it is a good time to go shopping, especially when it's coming up to Christmas, you can get a few bargains.

"I think people are being more careful with the credit crunch, I think they're spending more carefully. Young people were always ready to buy things and if they didn't have the money they'd borrow it or put it on their cards.

"They'll have to learn to spend the money they've got and not pay for it in the future."

The message had not yet got through to Georgie Bell, however, who was heading into Topshop, where there were no sales.

The 20-year-old geography student from New Town said: "It doesn't really affect me because I'm a student so I'm poor constantly, but I'm still shopping. Sales help, but if I see something I'll buy it even if it's not in the sale."