RIVAL traders who have enjoyed a bumper Easter have different visions of what the seafront should be offering visitors.

Warm weather in the second week of the Easter school holidays amplified an already successful bank holiday weekend, with traders along the seafront reporting especially high sales on Easter Monday, due to the Southend Shakedown.

Yet rival visions of the seafront are taking shape in anticipation of what traders hope will be another sunny weekend and May bank holiday, Tomorrow, US pancake and waffle chain Maple Moose will join Spar, Costa Coffee, Subway and Baskin Robbins Ice Cream – which opened on Easter Sunday – at the former Circus Circus arcade, which has been transformed into a food court by Southend Seafront Traders’ Association chairman, Paul Thompson.

He said: “The weather was a bit cold in the first week, so it was steady, but on Easter Sunday and Easter Monday it really picked up.

“Particularly on Monday, with all the motorbikers, it was a really busy day.

“This week, the sun has been out so it’s been very busy for this time of year. With Easter being quite early, it could have been raining, so I’m pleased.”

Martin Richardson of the Happidrome arcade also reported a bumper week of trading, but said he was developing an alternative to Mr Thompson’s food court idea.

He is opening an ice cream parlour as part of his business which he believes is more in keeping with the traditional seafront model.

He said: “We had a very good weekend, but Easter Monday was mobbed here.

“The motorcyclists brought fantastic trade into the area, it was one of those days where I couldn’t have asked for anything better.

“I’m hoping we’re going to have the same kind of weather this weekend and, by the May bank holiday, we’re going to have an ice cream parlour in our arcade as well.

“It will be serving Marshfield Farm ice cream, which provides ice cream to the Queen.

“I think people come to the seafront for what it is – amusement arcades, ice cream, burgers and donuts – it’s not about Spar and waffle shops.

“That’s town centre stuff.”