ONE MORE THING:AMID THE doom and gloom in the Irish retail sector, the operators of the Manor West retail and leisure complex in Tralee are at least trying to project a positive outlook for 2012.

“Things are tough, but if you don’t have a positive frame of mind then you are setting yourself up for a difficult year,” centre manager Derek Rusk told me this week.

Rusk said Manor West’s footfall was up 3 per cent in 2011, helped by the snow and ice of late 2010 not being repeated last month.

Free visits to Santa in the run-up to Christmas probably helped, too.

About 90,000 people a week are visiting the 27,870sq m (300,000sq ft) complex in Kerry, which claims to have the cheapest service charges for a large shopping centre in Ireland.

Its roster of tenants includes Debenhams, Tesco, TK Maxx, Next, Smyths Toys and Lifestyle Sports.

Manor West, which was developed by the locally-based Boyle family, celebrated its 10th birthday in November. It used the occasion to launch its first centre-wide gift card in partnership with Mastercard. It can be used in other shopping centres, including Liffey Valley in Dublin and Cork’s Mahon Point.

Rusk is in talks with a British electrical retailer to fill the one remaining vacant unit at the shopping complex.

“We’re nearly over the line but they haven’t put pen to paper yet,” he said.

Rusk said its service charges will remain at their current low levels. The centre is charging €3.60 per square foot in the main centre. Some rivals charge up to €12 a square foot.

“Proper cost management will help the tenants to weather the storm.”

His hopes for 2012?

“It’s a matter of just providing the best possible experience for the customer.

“We’re trying to consolidate what we have to get through what is likely to be a very testing year.”