APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) – Christmas has already come and gone, but the halls of area malls are still seeing a flood of shoppers.
While the effort to find the perfect gift for loved ones can be valiant, we can often make the wrong choices or just make mistakes in buying specific items.
“All malls and all shops are still very busy,” Fox River Mall General Manager John Burgland tells WTAQ News, “There are people that got something that is the wrong size or color, and they’re exchanging those. Generally, that’s taken care of quite well, but it’s still a busy time of year.”
Not everyone is coming in to exchange or return a gift. Burgland says they tend to see an extra surge of people looking to buy something for themselves.
“You have a lot of people who received money for Christmas, so they’re out shopping for what they actually want. A lot of gift cards are being redeemed at the same time,” Burgland says, “More and more people are receiving gift cards these days. A lot of us have our own wants and desires, and sometimes you can’t give everyone something they’d like – so you give them a gift card and they can buy something of their own.”
So, when can we expect the madness of crowded shops and malls end? Burgland has a general idea of when crowds might begin to dwindle back to regular size.
“It really falls off after New Years’. That’s really the time period where people are either back to school or travel back home, so it slows down at that point in time,” Burgland says.
Anyone looking to return or exchange a gift should double-check the return policies of the store where the items were bought. Those using gift cards should also be aware of their limits and stipulations.
