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More than a dozen Macy's Inc. stores were spending the weekend in the midst of a retail marathon, pledging to stay open around the clock until Christmas Eve. At Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Ill., shoppers were making purchases at 4 a.m. and officials expected the overnight shopping crowd to grow each night as Christmas Eve nears. "It was active," said Mike Dervos, a Macy's executive, who added that shoppers are buying many of the same items they've sought in previous years, like cosmetics and fragrances. "We were pleased." Still, some people inside America's malls seemed more like scouts than actual customers, waiting for last-minute bargains or browsing stores but holding few, if any, bags. After electronic gadgets, practical gifts seemed to be among the most popular. At Regency Square in Richmond, Va., items like sweaters, jeans, hats, scarves were some of the most common items being bought by shoppers. And at Fairlane Town Center in Dearborn, Mich., near the headquarters of Ford Motor Co.
-- which has been hurt by the drop in auto sales -- shoppers were eschewing jewelry and fur and leather items for unisex apparel, boots and outwear, according to mall owner Taubman Centers Inc.
Philadelphia resident Amy Warner managed to cross off her shopping list items like DVDs, wine, jewelry and gift cards, including a grocery store gift card for her grandparents who live near Allentown, Pa. "My grandmother said, 'All we really want is a gift card from Wegmans,'" Warner said. "They're retired. They have a fixed income. I don't think there's anything they really needed other than this."
[Associated
Press;
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