Crowds young and old found out first hand on Friday as they huddled around Santa and his elves at Melbourne's Bourke Street Mall for a first look at the 71st Myer Christmas Windows.Â
Created in collaboration with Disney and Pixar, hundreds of thousands of families are expected to line the mall from Saturday to see Sheriff Woody, Jessie, Buzz Lightyear and friends come to life in Toy Story Christmas.
Six Myer windows will follow the storyline of the Merry Christmas Woody picture book, starting from a busy Christmas Eve in Andy's bedroom.
Kahlani and Hudson Ives travelled two hours to be among the first children to catch a glimpse of this year's windows, which took more than 10,000 hours to construct.
They were looking forward to seeing their favourite characters, cowgirl Jessie and toy dachshund Slinky Dog, through the glass.
"I've done the Christmas windows for a really long time and it's just special that it's still going and I can bring the kids down," mum Sarmarah Clark told AAP.
MasterChef judge and decorated restaurateur Andy Allen was given the tap to narrate this year's story.
"I didn't ever think my bogan voice from Maitland (in New South Wales) would be featured in the Myer Christmas Windows, but I was super excited to do it," he told AAP.
"MasterChef is all essentially live, so it was one of the first times I've done script work."
This year's experience is amplified by a Toy Story Play Zone in the department store's basement, where families can snap photo moments and children can enjoy interactive activities.
With discretionary spending under mounting pressure from a pile-on of interest rate hikes and persistent inflation, mum-of-two Tayla O'Brien told AAP free Christmas activities such as the windows were a valuable to ensure her young children don't miss out.
"We've had to teach the kids the value of one present for Christmas," she said.
"It becomes one big gift, something that's going to be useful that they can use for a couple of years and that they can share."
Myer Executive Chair Olivia Wirth said the next six to 12 months would be tough for consumers and businesses alike.
"It's a tough environment and that it's highly competitive and it's global competition as well, so you've got to make sure that you understand the customer," she told AAP.
Next door to Myer, there was little cheer at competitor David Jones' flagship store, as designer brands began clearing stock after the department store was placed in voluntary administration on Thursday.
"(It's) really sad," Ms Wirth told AAP.
"They've been part of Australian life for many years, and it's really sad for the thousands of people that work there and the suppliers, particularly in the lead up to Christmas."
The Myer Christmas windows will be open to the public from November 7 to January 5, 2027.
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