DECKING the halls with boughs of holly is not enough anymore.
Retailers are splashing out millions of dollars to set the mood for holiday shopping and to create some buzz with the window-dressing.
At Central, the newest mall at Clarke Quay, more than $1million was spent to bring a dash of winter to tropical Singapore.
Smack in the middle of its atrium is a 10m by 5m ice-skating rink, where three different ice-skating musicals are being staged every day from now until Christmas Eve.
Champion Australian ice-skaters were hired to perform and shoppers can even sign up for a 45-minute ice-skating workshop.
It's free with receipts for any purchase at the mall and registration is on a first-come-first-served basis.
FREEZING
To keep things suitably frigid, a compressor behind the stage runs throughout the day to keep the ice in skating condition. Pipes run below the stage to freeze the water and the rink is 'watered' a few times daily with a watering trough.
Before each show, the top layer of ice is scraped off to keep the surface even and safe for skaters.
Ms Doreen Lee, assistant manager of Central's advertising and promotions department, said the idea was to have much festivity and cheer because it is the mall's 'very first Christmas'.
She said: 'We wanted something different and that both children and adults can enjoy, hence the ice-skating musical shows.
'Of course, as a new mall, we also want to make use of the festive season to draw shoppers to visit, shop and eat here.'
Luring shoppers with visual displays is also the name of the game at Bugis Junction.
The 4m by 4m contraption holds a motorised platform with a life-sized mannequin of Serafina, a character from the movie The Golden Compass.
The entire set-up, engineered by Soo Kee Jewellery, cost $500,000.
And as if that is not eye-catching enough, Soo Kee is also displaying a jewellery box with a 10-carat Brilliant Rose diamond on the cover, surrounded by 1,700 diamonds totalling 23 carats.
The sparkling jewellery box costs a cool $2.35m.
Both exhibits - which took nine months to conceptualise and make - are now listed in the Singapore Book Of Records as the largest musical box in Singapore and the most expensive jewellery box.
Ms Geraldine Loh, senior brand manager of Soo Kee Jewellery, told The New Paper on Sunday that the two exhibits are a step up from its diamond Christmas tree last year.
That tree was a 6m-tall affair with a star encrusted with 21,798 diamonds mounted on top. It was displayed at Bugis Junction.
As an extra attraction this year, there is a special lucky draw for shoppers. Every $50 spent at the shopping centre will give you a chance to win a miniature version of the jewellery box worth almost $60,000.
It's not all spend and spend though. Those in need are not forgotten this Christmas.
Central invited 40 children from children welfare group Beyond Social Services for an afternoon of ice-skating with the professional ice-skaters last month.
In another part of town, the Pan Pacific Hotel set up a 9m-tall pine tree decorated with 1,000 gingerbread men as part of its fund-raising efforts for the Assisi Hospice.
More gingerbread men are baked daily at its Atrium Deli and can be bought at $6 each, with $1 going to the hospice.
Pan Pacific's public relations manager, MsCheryl Ng, said the combination of the pine tree, ginger spice and honey makes for 'an inviting and festive ambience'.
About 1,800kg of ingredients was used to make the 1,000 gingerbread men that went on the tree, including 750kg of sugar, 350kg of flour, 350kg of honey, 20kg of M&M chocolate candy and 6,000 eggs.
The tree took about six hours to be decorated and cost $25,000 to produce.
With that much money riding on decor and activities, retailers have not forgotten security measures to ensure no one vandalises their props or steals the exhibits.
Soo Kee Jewellery has 24-hour security surveillance on the diamond-studded jewellery box, which is insured for the full cost of $2.35 million.
Central has security personnel doing round-the-clock checks on its ice rink and there are the cameras around the mall to prevent mischief or theft.
All this effort does seem to work in attracting a crowd.
Simei resident Janice Teo, 31, took her two daughters, aged 5 and 2, to watch the ice-skating show at Central.
She said: 'It's a great idea to entertain the children during the holidays. The show has an adult appeal as well.'
Madam Sim Lee Leng, in her 60s, took her three grandchildren to watch the show as well.
She said: 'The kids don't get to see a live ice-skating show very often.'
She even signed up her two older grandchildren - Nelson, 9, and Natalie Enriquez, 7 - for the ice-skating workshop after the show.
She added that expections are high for such arts-inspired entertainment during the festive season.
'It's become the norm... coming up with activities like this. I always expect them to do something different every year.'
To keep things suitably frigid, a compressor behind the stage runs throughout the day to keep the ice in skating condition. Pipes run below the stage to freeze the water and the rink is 'watered' a few times daily with a watering trough.
