KENTWOOD, Mich. — With Christmas right around the corner, last-minute shoppers are flooding Woodland Mall in Kentwood, creating packed lines and crowded stores as neighbors rush to complete their holiday shopping.
The mall has seen a significant surge in foot traffic this week, with parking lots filling up during peak hours and shoppers carrying bags throughout the shopping center.
"We have seen a lot of traffic at the mall, a lot of people carrying bags, which is a good sign,"said Lori Willshomer, Marketing Director for Woodland mall. "Our parking lots have been parked out periodically during busier times."
For some shoppers like Franky Miron , who drives a truck for a living, this week finally provided the opportunity to get their Christmas shopping done.
"I still have to give gifts. I finally got a job that I'm working for, and I can finally afford to buy everybody something," Miron said.
The holiday schedule has given them the time they needed to shop.
"Obviously, its the holiday so they gave me the days off, so I could finally be able to spend time for myself and go to the stores and finally buy stuff," he said.
The increased crowds have created challenges for mall workers, who are dealing with larger groups of customers and longer wait times.
"Especially with such a small store here, we get people coming in groups of four or five." said Sarah Elzinga, manager at Perfumania. "And they'll only be like, two or three of us on staff, so we will be running around past each other."
And that's making wait times longer in and around the mall.
"Something that could normally be a 15-minute experience turns into 30 to 35 minutes just because I have to handle so many people at a time." said Kaitlyn Kenyon, manager at Perfumania.
Despite the last-minute timing, shoppers emphasized that their purchases aren't afterthoughts, especially when it comes to family.
"I made sure enough was left for my wife, even though she's not the last on the list, she's always number one," said Marcus Pinkley, a last minute shopper.
For any truly last-second stocking stuffers, Woodland Mall will open at 9 a.m. on Christmas Eve and close at 6 p.m.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
