The rain gods have issued a restrain order, shoppers are flooding the streets and shop-owners are scrambling to make up for the lost time and sales.

The incessant rains and waterlogging last week had slammed the brakes on pre-Puja shopping, and meeting sales targets seemed mission impossible, from Camac Street to Hatibagan.

Take Pantaloons, the first modern retail success story scripted in the city, which had fixed a Rs 20-crore pre-Puja topline target.

?The rains did affect us. Last week, the footfall in our stores dropped by over 40 per cent, in comparison with the corresponding pre-Puja week in 2003. But thanks to the growth in sales, the loss in volumes could be restricted to less than 5 per cent,? said R.S. Rekhi, head of operations (east), Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd.

While admitting that it was difficult to make up for the lost sales opportunity during this critical phase, Rekhi added that a last-minute buying blitz was expected, for which everything possible was being done to increase ?efficiency? at the store.

With two days to go for Mahalaya, pulling-out-all-stops is the chorus in the world of retail and strategies in place range from ramping up staff strength to setting up more cash counters, from elaborate merchandising to extended store timings.

Salt Lake?s City Centre has gone a step forward and organised a mela to mix marketing with merry-making. ?This is our first year of operation. The footfall over the weekend crossed 32,000 and all our anchor stores did brick business,? said Vineet Verma, chief executive officer, Bengal Ambuja Metro Development.

According to estimates, the festive season results in spending ? excluding expenditure on white goods ? of around Rs 450 crore in and around Calcutta and shop-owners ? pushing garments and gold, footwear and food items ? are in the autumnal race to bag a bigger share of the Puja pie.

A spokesperson for P.C. Chandra Jewellers indicated how gold rush has become a key component of Puja shopping. ?We have a target of selling 30 kg, an increase of 15 per cent from last year. Given the trend, we are confident of meeting it this year and even surpassing it,? he claimed.

According to Surjeet Singh, chief administrator, Metro Plaza, the five-fold increase in weekend turnout at the mall on Ho Chi Minh Sarani was the best thing that could have happened to lift the spirit and set the shopping ball rolling, post-depression.

?Our target was around Rs 20 crore from eastern India, and we are somewhere around the half-way mark. Last week was bad, but the sales shot up over the weekend and we expect this to continue,? said Chandan Roy, general manager, operations, Bata.

Smaller traders, too, are having their share of festive fun under the Kolkata Shopping Festival umbrella. ?If the first day?s response to the festival is any indication, we should succeed in creating a brand for Puja shopping,? said Biswadip Gupta, president, Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.