Shoppers Drug Mart customers hoping to hear fa-la-la-la-las and pa-rum-pum-pum-pums are going to be in for a surprise, as the company has nixed playing holiday music in its stores.

At least for now.

On its Facebook page Friday, the company posted a note stating it decided to suspend all Christmas music until further notice as of midnight. “We do take customer feedback to heart, and it does lead to change,” said the note, which had over 2,600 comments posted on it by customers by the middle of the afternoon.

Tammy Smitham, Shoppers vice president of communications, told The Star that the Christmas music will be back — just closer to the big day.

Since the company joined Facebook over a year ago, Smitham said the real-time feedback it gets there has helped Shoppers make quick decisions on issues affecting customers.

“We’ve always started our Christmas music around this time of year,” she said, adding after Halloween you move into the next holiday. “For most people, they felt it was too soon. What we decided to do is delay it by a couple weeks, and sort of play it by ear and align it close to the holidays.”

The move to drop the yuletide tunes from its in-house sound system got mixed reviews from those commenting on the Shoppers Facebook page.

“I am astounded that you would stop playing Christmas music,” one person wrote in response to the Shoppers Facebook post. “I will not be shopping at Shoppers anymore if you do this.” Others called the change “ridiculous” and said that Christmas music brought needed joy.

But many cheered the move, with several noting that they thought it would be appropriate to put the holiday music back on after Remembrance Day.

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