Hi Mel,
Some odds and ends: At around 2:30 PM Friday AM Radio 780 was claiming the traffic coming and going to Gurnee Mills was causing traffic jams on Rte 94. This station was also reporting Woodfield's parking lot to be 86% full (whereas I doubt I've ever seen it 50% full) and Woodfield Mall to be the busiest mall in the state. Earlier in the week I also heard some minute long radio ads on one of Chicago's sports radio chanels (AM 1160) announcing the opening of ther Gurnee Mills Bass Pro Outdoor World. I think we're going to see much better 4Q revenues here in Chicago than the analysts expect.
Here's an article on MOA on Friday:
Mega mall packs in diverse group
By Chris Tolimson
Associated Press
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- Lines were the order of the day at shopping malls across the state Friday, with Minnesotans joining in the post-Thanksgiving binge of holiday shopping.
Young and old, rich and poor, people of all races and creeds were at the Mall of America early to participate in the uniquely American ritual of the busiest shopping day of the year.
Even before stores opened at the nation's largest shopping and entertainment complex at 8 a.m., there was a 15 minute wait at the Cinnabon shop, where customers tanked up on coffee and cinnamon rolls before a hard day of buying.
''We got up at 5:30. It's a tradition for us every year to come early and then spend the day here,'' said Bev Haze, a mother of two. ''We'll be here until about 3:30 this afternoon.''
Perhaps nowhere else in Minnesota could such a diverse group of people be found sharing a single pursuit. Inner-city teens, dressed in hip-hop regalia, mixed with wrinkled farmers in western shirts, both groups wearing baseball caps.
Immigrant families and yuppie couples searched store shelves for the toys that every child seems to want this year. Traditional baby dolls and tool sets have been forsaken for dinosaurs and characters from movies and television.
The shoppers also shared another common quarry: the bargain.
''I'm shopping early, so I haven't bought anything that wasn't on sale,'' said Jane Hagert, who was standing in line at Kay-Bee Toys holding boxes stacked to her chin. Hagert, from Granite Falls, is expecting her third child early next year.
But not everyone at the mall was consuming. Demonstrators, waving banners and handing out leaflets, awaited the earliest shoppers, trying to persuade them not to buy anything.
''We are asking people to take a look at their spending habits to ask them if they can go one full day without shopping,'' said Whitney Fink, one of 17 protesters.
''Buy Nothing Day is a global campaign designed to promote a move toward voluntary simplicity and away from the excesses of American consumer culture,'' said Bob Greenberg.
Some shoppers laughed and smiled at the protesters, but headed inside anyway.
For many, a trip to the mall was a family event. Mike Jewson's family of four was shopping, but he spent the first part of the morning playing at Legoland with his 4-year-old daughter, Sara.
''I put money away and that way we don't have to pay interest,'' Jewson said, explaining why he is paying cash for everything. He said he planned to spend about $900 dollars total this year, the same as last year.
Lego store manager Maggie Keady said not everyone was showing Jewson's restraint, but added that shoppers this year are well informed.
''Sales are very good, people are shopping early. We started getting busy with people mentioning Christmas shopping in early October,'' Keady said. ''There's lots of products kids are asking for.''
By mid-morning, there was no way to avoid the crush. Grandparents clutching gift lists written in a child's hand on notebook paper fought for attention in checkout lines with mothers trying to carry purchases and screaming babies at the same time.
Lines began forming under an 18-foot high Christmas wreath made of Snoopy dolls at 10 a.m. for lunch at the Rainforest Cafe. But for many, the day was an annual rite of passage.
''I do it every year and I'd never miss it,'' said Haze.
(end repost)
Finally and off-topic, this weeks Barrons (Eric J Savitz, Plugged In, Pg 63) writes on this years Comdex Trade Show and claims that a new 3 1/2 " drive from Sony and Fuji Photo called HiFD for high capacity floppy drive is 100% backwards compatible to the current floppy and has twice the capacity and a much faster transfer rate than a Zip drive. Savitz is calling it an Iomega Killer. You probably heard about it on the Iomega thread already but if not it sounds like you better research it.
Hope all's well around the equator! Greeting to Cathy and the Spark.
Regards,
Dennis |
