For Woolworths, the Christmas period was not merely important; it was make-or-break. The store, which went into administration on November 26 last year, traditionally made a loss in the first half of the year but was buoyed by sales in the festive period. By the time of its demise, about two thirds of annual sales were made in the run-up to Christmas.

Woolworths’s successors are determined not to fall into the same trap. Andy Latham, founder of Alworths, a “variety shop” that opened its first store in Didcot on November 5, expects about 30 per cent of his yearly trading to be done over the festive period. “My target was always to open now, so that we learn quickly what sells and what doesn’t, before ordering next Christmas’s stock,” he said. “But by being smaller we hope to be able to cater to local markets throughout the year.”

Mr Latham, formerly head of store concessions and development at Woolworths, plans to open another 17 Alworths stores in 2010. “We want to have 50 eventually. But the difference between us and Woolworths is that our head team will still be kept small. And we are being much more selective about our locations.”

Christmas wasn’t Woolworths’ problem, Richard Perks, director of retail research at Mintel, said. Many of its 807 stores were in large towns or cities, where they faced insurmountable competition from larger stores such as Tesco and Argos. Mr Latham says that Alworths is sticking to small market towns, which offer low rents, less competition and are in need of revival.

“The smaller business model could well work,” Mr Perks said. “Even if there is a Sainsburys or Tesco near by, so long as it is small, it is unlikely to have room for non-food products. Alworths could complement it.”

At Wellworths, which opened in March and which was formerly the Dorchester Woolworths store, Claire Roberton, the manager, predicts that Christmas trading will account for about 50 per cent of total year sales, but she expects this to drop slightly the following year.

“We are keeping it more traditional, with more tinsel and fewer complicated high-tech gadgets. I was with Woolworths for 18 years, and I’ve listened to what customers have been asking for.”

That means that, in addition to the tinsel, Ms Roberston has pared down its CD and DVD stocks and introduced jigsaw puzzles, pet toys and — perhaps bizarrely — wool.

Times Recommends

• EMI gambles on £400m pact to beat the bank
• Chancellor must find extra £10bn in savings
• Tesco’s secret chain charges customers more