Central Florida shoppers
do some last-minute shopping at local stores before Christmas.
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS — Frank and Gina McKenzie got up early and beat the Christmas Eve crowds as they picked up a few final gifts for their grandsons.
On Tuesday, the Seminole County residents will be traveling to see their grandsons in North Carolina, and bringing along their latest purchases of dinosaur shirts, monster trucks and Pokemon toys.
By 10 a.m., their shopping trip for the day was complete before crowds were expected to ramp up in the afternoon.
“We decided to walk around the store, and luckily, we didn’t get a cart,” Frank McKenzie quipped after paying for as much as he and his wife could carry at Kohl’s.
As hours ticked closer to Christmas morning, shoppers across Central Florida turned to retailers for their last-minute stops.
The National Retail Federation reports that November sales were up about 6 percent compared to last year, and predicts that will meet its forecast of a 3.6- to 4-percent growth for the holiday shopping season.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Commerce Department said Friday that Americans are shopping more, as consumer spending rose 0.6 percent from October.
Cars began filling the parking lot early at the Kohl’s off State Road 436.
Since Thursday, the store has been operating around the clock, allowing those who work late to stop in on their way home before doors closed at 6 p.m. Sunday until after Christmas.
“It’s going to be nuts — in a good way,” store manager Mitchell Webb predicted of the final hours. “People are really excited … maybe they’re here on a trip or just getting that one last thing.”
Webb said the store sold out of its stock of PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles but still had video games and controllers that are always popular. With the recent release of the “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” movie, again toys and clothes have flown off shelves, Webb said.
With two young children, Vanessa Clay, a lab technician, was looking for toys for her 2-year-old and 9-month-old sons.
She pushed a stroller with a Race Away Coaster — a colorful ramp with a plastic car for children to ride on — atop it.
“He wants anything he can build and knock down,” said Clay of her older child. “[Her 9-month-old] wants whatever his brother has.”
At the Altamonte Mall, shoppers began trickling in when it opened at 8 a.m., and by 11 a.m., retailers were in full swing as people were leaving stores with their purchases.
Some families lined up to get their pictures taken with Santa Claus, and children whispered Christmas wishes in his ear.
The mall was expected to stay open until 6 p.m.
Lynn Bender got there at 8:30 a.m., and within two hours, she’d picked out her last purchases for her adult daughters and young niece and nephew.
Bender’s family was due to arrive for a Christmas scavenger hunt that afternoon, so she knew she only had a tight window to pick up the gifts, a cookie from Mrs. Fields and stop at the grocery store.
“I just bought some stocking stuffers,” she said with her shopping bags on a table in front of her. “I kind of had it in my head so I wasn’t just wandering around here aimlessly.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.