20 staff, four shoppers at 2am
It is 2am at Eaton's new 24-hour- a-day Kmart and apart from staff, six people are in the store.
Two of us are from the media.
The small but steady trickle of insomniacs, agoraphobics, shift and fly-in, fly-out workers started dropping off after midnight.
By 2am, customers shop under the gaze of almost 20 staff, on hand to answer questions about skincare, Tupperware and any other merchandise that could arise on this windy, midweek night in the small South West town.
Much like a Las Vegas casino, it is hard to tell if it is night-time outside behind the windowless walls.
But that is where the comparison with Las Vegas ends.
Eaton is in the shire of Dardanup, population 10,000.
Even in Bunbury - the closest major centre 8km away - it's a struggle to get a meal after 8pm on a weeknight.
Shoppers Lun Choo and Irene Ong, who live in Bunbury, are delighted to be within driving distance of the State's first 24-hour-a-day department store, which opened this week.
As they amble down the brightly lit but empty aisles, upbeat music playing optimistically in the background, they explain how extended trading reminds them of their home state Penang in Malaysia.
But the pair hold little hope the store will trade around the clock for long.
Mr Choo believes that unless a 24-hour-a-day supermarket opens in the complex, the venture will be short-lived.
It was a common fear among the midnight shoppers interviewed by _The Weekend West _, who were drawn to Kmart in the early hours of Thursday morning for a range of reasons. Nightfill workers Zoe Halford and Alanna McKenzie said it was easier to buy presents for their children when the little ones were tucked up in bed.
Kim Grant, nursing a baby kangaroo while pushing a trolley, said midnight shopping worked in well with the joey's feeding schedule and suited her fear of big crowds.
Deb Bielawski said caffeine- induced insomnia had sent her in search of bargains. Among the 40 or so customers to attend the store between midnight and 2am, an unusually high number commented on a preference to avoid children.
Store manager Sam Allen is so confident overnight shopping will be a hit, he has rostered the same number of night staff as during day shifts.
He concedes the ratio may change, though it will be months before shopping patterns emerge.
The site was chosen as WA's first 24/7 department store because it is one of only a handful of regions that allow unlimited trading.
Small Business Minister Joe Francis believes deregulated trading will spread like a tidal wave through the State, possibly over the next two to five years.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry wants full deregulation across the State to replace the "patchwork of retail trading hours that currently exists".
And Commerce Minister Michael Mischin reiterated this week that the Government was committed to pursuing a policy of continued incremental reform of retail trading hours.
Independent Grocers Association president John Cummings believes it will be a disaster for small business.
Mr Cummings said it would be cheaper for big retailers to cover the cost of Sunday penalty rates, effectively handing them a bigger slice of retail action.
He said not even Perth city was big enough to sustain unlimited trading, with retailers limiting trade to only six hours on Sundays despite the option of opening longer.
Shadow small business minister Kate Doust rejected the Government's claim that Sunday trading would help small retailers in what has long been a lacklustre market.
She said they would benefit more from changes to issues such as utility and rental costs.
