The big Kmart in a low-income neighborhood of Minneapolis ran out of carts inside the store by midmorning and there was a long line at the checkout lane of Calido Chile Traders at the Mall of America in Bloomington.
The last weekend before Christmas was a busy one for holiday shoppers -- and not just at glitzy mall department stores.
''People think it's the day after Thanksgiving -- but today's is our busiest day,'' said Mall of America manager Maureen Cahill, who was greeting shoppers near the rotunda together with ''Last-minute MALL-ie'' on Saturday. MALL-ie, a woman in a U.S. flag wind-breaker and Christmas lights in her hair, was dispensing gift ideas, coupon books, free drinks and advice to dazed shoppers.
Cahill said an estimated 7 million to 8 million people have visited the nation's largest indoor shopping and entertainment complex this holiday season -- 150,000 on Saturday. And they came from afar. Last weekend, just under 100 people flew in by special charter from Germany to shop, Cahill said.
By noon Saturday, it was hard to get one of the 12,000 spots in the onsite parking lots, and shoppers seemed to be buying as quickly as stores were slashing prices.
''We're buying more, because the economy seems so good,'' said Gene Skoog, who was shopping mostly for clothing with his wife and son-in-law.
Cahill said the Mall retailers expect sales to be up 5 to 7 percent this year. According to MALL-ie, the most popular buys were ''pampering'' gifts for women, or ''what you get for the girl who has everything.'' Jesse Ventura Christmas ornaments and action figures were men's top picks.
''A lot of people are buying luxury, big-ticket items,'' Cahill added.
The sales covered most everything, from jewelry to tools. Nancy Palmer was taking advantage of the extra 10 percent off sale prices on tools at Sears. Macy's was slashing an additional 15 percent off the 50 percent sale on jewelry.
The buying frenzy seemed pervasive, even on holiday trimmings. Seasonal Concepts advertised a lights-on artificial tree for $257 dollars on sale, and the sign said the floor model was the only one left.
''It's been phenomenal, better than anticipated,'' said Tony DiPerna, manager of Bergstrom Jewelers. The store had no special sale, but did offer a drawing for a $10,000 diamond necklace. DiPerna said many clients were buying platinum and diamond jewelry at $2,500 and up.
Mickey Frye, manager at Petite Sophisticate, echoed him, saying sales appeared ''definitely up from last year.'' New millennium dresses were big sellers, he said.
Whether shopping for diamonds at the Mall or for bargain toys at Kmart, Minnesota shoppers agreed on one thing -- they preferred crowding the stores to giving out credit card numbers over the Internet. Shoppers said they don't trust online shopping, and DiPerna said that most visitors to Bergstrom's new Web site use it to compile a ''wish list'' they then bring to the store.
As the multi-bag-carrying, frazzled-looking crowds swelled at the Mall Saturday afternoon, shoppers also agreed that -- regardless of when they started -- they wanted to finish their shopping during the weekend. MALL-ie said most shoppers asked her fortune-telling crystal ball, ''Am I going to find all my gifts today?''
But Cahill said the frenzy goes right up to Christmas Eve, when Mall visitors are either shopping frantically or enjoying the show -- ''all dressed-up to laugh at last-minute shoppers.''
At least one Mall shopper will be happily away from the craziness by then. Jarmo Kuisma, a businessman from Finland, looked discouraged as he perused a Mall map, trying to squeeze in some Christmas shopping as he waited for his flight back home.
''I'm a little bit surprised, it (the Mall) is quite big,'' he said. ''I don't like so much.'' But, he added with a shy smile, ''I need to buy something before I go home.''
