Dec 28, 2010

Store owners say shoppers happy, ready to spendBy K KaufmannMyDesert.com

Even the overflow parking lots were full at the Desert Hills Premium Outlets in Cabazon on Sunday as post-holiday shoppers hit the stores, still hungry for bargains.

Liz Perkovich, the outlets’ assistant general manager, didn’t have exact figures for sales or foot traffic, but noted, “The lines at the stores, the shopping bags, the sheer volume of people trying to get on and off the ramp, it was very busy.

“We had lines waiting to get into Gucci, waiting to get into Coach.” she said.

Across the Coachella Valley and nation, the sales momentum continued with post-holiday sales as consumers cashed in gift cards and snapped up discounted items, with sales outpacing returns.

Sales Sunday and Monday were going well for many, if not all, valley retailers, who see good business now as a precursor for the critical winter tourism season that runs from January through May.

Jewel Orchid, a small jewelry boutique at The Gardens on El Paseo, saw its holiday sales jump 20 percent over last year, said Summer Tillman, who owns the shop with her mother, Sharon Swenson.

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