CHARLESTON, W.Va. — With less than a week to go before Christmas, West Virginia retailers are hoping for a big final shopping weekend.
West Virginia Retailers Association President Bridget Lambert said shopping numbers are usually tied to timing of the holiday. She said with Christmas being next Wednesday that will turn the final weekend of shopping into a three-day weekend with many people probably taking Monday off work.
“I think you’ll see a lot of traffic this weekend and probably, if I’m to guess, there will be a lot of people taking Monday as a personal holiday so that could be good for retailers and consumers with that extra date built in there for a lot of people,” Lambert said.
One new shopping option that seems to be growing in popularity this season is the “pick-up in store” option. Lambert said shoppers pick out something on line and then are able to pick it up at the store in a matter of hours.
“It’s a great convenience for people who don’t have time to go into stores but there are items they really need,” Lambert said. “The grocery industry has been offering that for consumers and it has taken off tremendously this past year.”
Lambert said the shopping numbers she’s seen have been good ones and she’s hoping for a strong finish.
“With the strong employment numbers and the higher wages we are seeing in the reports, we are on track for having a very strong holiday shopping season for 2019,” Lambert said.