THE number of shoppers coming to Wycombe town centre has more than doubled since Eden opened in March.

While building of the £300m shopping complex was underway, between 150,000 and 200,000 shoppers a week visited the 1980s Octagon centre.

The most recent data shows the flow of shoppers has escalated to almost 450,000.

During the week commencing August 25 this year – the latest for which the Eden development company has figures – visitors to the Eden complex totalled 446,453.

Brookfield’s head of retail Tim Buckley told the Bucks Free Press yesterday that shoppers’ response to Eden hugely exceeded expectations, particularly in view of the credit crunch.

He said retail centres employ a sophisticated system using computers and cameras to calculate precisely how many customers have visited their shops each week.

“Historically High Wycombe was a town which was only of interest to shoppers from the catchment area,” he said. “Since Eden opened we are drawing them in from outlying locations. Families from Beaconsfield, Marlow, Amersham and the Chalfonts previously went to London and to other major centres.

“Now that Wycombe has a really stunning House of Fraser store and a whole lot of other excellent new shops, people are thinking I don’t need to drive all the way to Reading when we’ve got all the shops in Wycombe.

“It was always a good centre for leisure activities and houses, but it didn’t have the shops. Now it has.”