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Community News

Snow doesn’t slow holiday shoppers long

Brett Dunlap
POSTED: December 21, 2009

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VIENNA - Many people were at the Grand Central Mall on Sunday to finish up their Christmas shopping as the holiday shopping season entered its final week.

For some it was taking care of all of their shopping at once while others were getting those last few gifts for friends and relatives.

Snow which hit the region late Friday and early Saturday kept some shoppers home early Saturday morning, but once the roads were cleared off, shoppers were out in force throughout the rest of the weekend, said Katrina Stephens, marketing director for the Grand Central Mall.

"The snow did not affect the shopping as much as you would think," she said. "People were a little cautious (Saturday morning).

"It was a little slow in the morning until the roads got cleared off. From 11 a.m. on, the mall was slammed with shoppers Saturday. The mall has been slammed with people all day (Sunday) as well. The Christmas shoppers are definitely out in full force."

Many people, like Roger Cline of Sistersville, were at the mall Sunday getting a few more gift items for his grandchildren.

"We were doing some last-minute shopping, finishing a couple of little items," Cline said. "We got most of it done and now we are just trying to wrap it up."

He said the crowds at the mall were not too bad and lines weren't too long.

Sara Gibbs, of Mason, W.Va., was at the mall Sunday and said she was finishing up her holiday shopping for about six different people. She has been shopping on and off since October so it would not all wait until the last minute to get done. She just had a few more things to get Sunday.

"I am rounding it up," she said. "I am getting the last few items and approaching the finish line.

"I have a list and I am checking it twice."

Gibbs said the crowds were about normal for what she expected. She usually shops at the Huntington Mall, but came up to the Grand Central Mall primarily for the new Dunham's Sports store.

Christopher Riding, of Caldwell, Ohio, said he and his family were trying to finish up their Christmas shopping.

"This is it," he said. "This is it."

They had spent over two hours at the mall Sunday and were continuing until they were done, Riding said.

Luke Whitlatch, of Ravenswood, said he was at the mall getting a few more things before Christmas on Friday, as he has most of his Christmas shopping already done. He had been at the mall for a couple of hours on Sunday.

"We are just doing some last-minute things," he said. "We really didn't have the time (Saturday) with all of the snow."

Whitlatch had to stand in a couple of lines for 20 to 30 minutes, but for the most part, it went pretty smoothly, he said. He came north to the mall to try to get as much as he could in one centralized location.

The clock is starting to count down and he wanted to to get his shopping finished up.

"I have a couple more family members I am shopping for," Whitlatch said. "It is now crunch time."

 
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View Comments: | 1-1 | Post a comment
gooddawg
12-21-09 3:48 PM
i thought the area folks did real well with the snow sat....only thing i noticed out of sorts was.around 7:15 am..on blizzard drive .somewhere around the state farm office and the fire dept..there was avehicle in the ditch .and a guy in a big truck was trying to play policeman by blocking off all of blizzard drive >>> i noticed not to many people payed any mind to this wanna be cop...and went about their business . other than that i thought everyone did good.

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