holiday sales

Chocolate and flower shops busy for Valentine's Day

Procrastinating romantics were out in full force Saturday, using the final day before Valentine's Day to pick out the perfect gifts to please their sweethearts.

"Valentine's Day is a last-minute holiday," said Gayle Harte, owner of Gayle's Chocolate, 417 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak. "People don't shop ahead." Read more...

Floral industry sees boost on Valentine's Day

Love is in the air this Valentine's Day. And some Michiana retailers are cashing in on romance. Despite the economy, showing your sweetheart you care is still a top priority.

"It's not last minute; I got a little while still yet," said shopper Gary Showalter.

Goshen's Gary Showalter is still trying to find the perfect Valentine's gift for the love of his life he married some 40 years ago. Read more...

Snow cools Valentine passion

Salisbury -- Love. Say it with flowers, chocolates, wine, and, in a trend of achy backs from snow shoveling, a massage. But say it, with Valentine's Day gifts from area shops that specialize in tokens of the heart, and are open today, hoping for last-minute business from snowbound Romeos.

Across the region this year, businesses that lost time during last week's blizzard have decided to unlock doors today to shoppers who were either snowed in, too -- or simply procrastinated -- and are in need of a perfect Valentine's Day gift. Adding an extra day to their workweek is a chance, too, to make the most of Cupid's arrival on a weekend, when lovers are likely away from the workplace. Read more...

Valentine's a sweet time for shops

Vienna - With Valentine's Day approaching, area chocolate shops and florists experienced a jump in sales the past week.

Holl's Chocolates prepared thousands of online orders to be shipped this week and sold hundreds more at its Vienna location on Grand Central Avenue.

"We really get busy around the holidays," said co-owner Michelle Holl. "We probably sell the most chocolate on Valentine's Day and Mother's Day." Read more...

How did local shops fare during the holidays?

Nationally, the holiday shopping season was a lot better in 2009 than the previous year.

According to Reuters, "SpendingPulse, a unit of MasterCard Advisors, showed retail sales rose 3.6 percent in the period from Nov. 1 through Christmas Eve on Dec. 24." Read more...

Santa delivers for U.S. retailers

New York -- Inventory control, coupled with last-minute shopping and post-holiday bargain hunting, drove U.S. retailers' best monthly sales in more than 20 months, results showed Thursday, and several -- from discounter Target Corp. to upscale retailer Nordstrom Inc. -- gave rosier profit outlooks. Read more...

This holiday season, Web sales are retailers' biggest gift

Consumers spent a little more than anticipated during the holiday season, according to a report out on Monday, and a significant e-tail threshold may have been crossed on Christmas Day at Amazon, the online bookseller.

For the first time ever, online sales of e-books on Christmas Day exceeded sales of physical books at Amazon, the company said on Monday. Read more...

Retailers' pockets jingling after spirited holiday shopping season

Despite the struggling economy, SouthCoast retailers enjoyed a gift from consumers this season with relatively strong sales. While retail chains have not yet released their end-of-the-year numbers, local stores saw steady business in the days before and after Christmas. The season could end up improving upon last year's dismal numbers, according to store owners, mall managers and retail experts. Read more...

Retailers talk shop: Many say holiday season was bright spot for year

Dover — Christmas had only just begun when many retailers began aggressive marketing campaigns with promises of deep discounts and extended store hours designed to lengthen the busiest shopping season by another weekend after the holiday.

For many, Saturday's strong sales — including from shoppers bearing gift cards — capped what has been a promising holiday season, even if sales were nowhere near pre-recession levels. Read more...

How did the Valley do this Christmas?

Roanoke Rapids — The holiday spirit treated retailers kindly this season. Many stores, which continue to offer seasonal bargains, exceeded expectations despite some early worries.

“We had some concerns with Christmas being on a weekend and people going out of town,” said Richard Bunn, store manager for JC Penney and Company in Becker Village Mall. “We’re going to finish this month ahead of our plan.” Read more...