It's a wrap: Shoppers flock to stores to find last-minute gifts

Elizabethtown residents Martin and Martha Moreman and their son, Matthew, 18, made a last-minute stop Sunday at Kohl’s to find a final Christmas gift.

Jill Pickett

Vivian Mimms, right, rings up Martha Humpert's purchases Sunday at J.C. Penney in Elizabethtown. Humpert was doing some last minute Christmas shopping.

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Jill Pickett

Alice Carroll browses the pajama selection at Kohl’s on Sunday as she tries to find a set to wear for a Christmas Eve family gathering.

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Jill Pickett

Martin and Martha Moreman and son Matthew, 18, shop for a Christmas gift for a relative Sunday at Kohl’s in Elizabethtown.

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The gift was for the couple’s 8-year-old great-nephew.

Though Martin Moreman said they didn’t have a specific toy in mind, the couple brought their son along to make sure the right present was chosen.

Ultimately, the family picked out a remote control-operated truck.

“We know him; we know what he likes,” Martin Moreman said.

The weekend before Christmas typically sees a lot of foot traffic, said Samantha Page, manager and merchandise and execution leader at the J.C. Penney in Towne Mall.

After Black Friday, the Saturday before Christmas is the second biggest shopping day of the year at the Elizabethtown department store, she said.

“Nothing compares to Black Friday,” Page said.

On Sunday, the store saw some heavy traffic in the morning, but Page said she expected to see fewer shoppers in the evening hours.

As for today, Page said J.C. Penney likely would see some frantic Christmas Eve shoppers in the morning but expected slow traffic later in the afternoon.

To accommodate last-minute holiday shoppers, she said the store expanded its hours Saturday and Sunday and told employees it was “all hands on deck” for the weekend.

Because it is so close to Christmas Day, Page said most shoppers are finished or simply looking for “stocking stuffers.”

Campbellsville resident Alice Carroll perused pajamas Sunday at Kohl’s for her final Christmas gift.

However, her last-minute gift was for herself, she said.

“I’m finished,” Carroll said. “I did my shopping for everyone else. This is for me.”

Her family celebrates Christmas Eve with a pajama party tonight, she said, and Carroll was searching for a pair of red pajamas for the occasion.

Page said she tends to see holiday shoppers from all over Hardin County as well as those from smaller communities such as Campbellsville and Hardinsburg.

“We have a lot here the smaller communities don’t,” she said.

Sarah Bennett can be reached at (270) 505-1750 or sbennett@thenewsenterprise.com.