SALEM — It wasn't all bad news for retailers this holiday season.

Turtle Alley, a shop that sells handmade chocolates inside the Museum Place Mall, found that cautious and cash-strapped shoppers still appreciate a box of fudge or truffles in times of crisis.

"If they can't have that fancy television, at least they can enjoy some fancy candy," said Jennie Fleisher, the store's manager.

She expected holiday sales to be right around the same level as last year.

The numbers were even better at Rouge, a cosmetics shop on Derby Street, where December sales were about 35 percent to 40 percent higher than last year, according to store manager Andrea Ducharme.

Rouge, which opened in September 2007, saw a rise in the number of gift cards it sold and a big rush in the few days leading up to Christmas, Ducharme said.

"If it hadn't been for the weekend storm, I think we would have been even busier," Ducharme said.

Stories like that, however, are hardly typical.

Across the country, holiday retail sales plummeted, and Salem's downtown shops are still feeling the crunch.

"People are spending less," said Rinus Oosthoek, the executive director of the Salem Chamber of Commerce. "It's not just visible in downtowns, it's visible in the malls, too."

"It's an attitude," he said. "If you don't know what 2009 is going to bring, of course you're going to be more careful."

At J. Mode, a women's clothing shop on Front Street, business was strong until the two snowstorms that hit the weekend before Christmas.

"It wasn't last year," said owner Janet Barsanti, "but we're holding our own here."

Barsanti said shoppers were spending less and not buying as much for themselves.

Now businesses are bracing for a much quieter next few months. The Salem Chamber will meet with shop owners next week to chart out ways to survive the first quarter, typically the slowest time of the year.

Businesses hope that a series of special events, including a wine- and chocolate-tasting festival, the Salem Film Fest, a literary festival and Salem Restaurant Week, will lure shoppers downtown during the difficult winter months.

"It's up to all of us to make sure we organize events and activities to make sure if people spend even a little bit, they spend it in Salem," Oosthoek said.