Shoppers Hunt for Post-Christmas Deals

Holiday shoppers across metro Atlanta are heading back to stores with gift cards and items to be exchanged and returned.

Some shoppers expected discounted prices and smaller crowds, but more than a few left disappointed.

At Perimeter Mall in north Atlanta, parking lots were full and stores appeared busy.

One senior named Eunice of Sandy Springs had just returned a Christmas gift at a department store, but wasn’t happy about getting store credit in return.

She said there wasn’t anything left in the store to spend it on. She was on her way to another mall.

They wouldn’t give me cash. They gave me credit. I’m going somewhere else to look.”

Michael Johnson of Snellville complained he didn’t see too many day-after-Christmas sales. One of his favorite clothing stores actually had a sale, but he wasn’t impressed.

“It really wasn’t that big a deal. The sale was like the same prices as you find in normal stores. I wouldn’t tell people to come here and go out of their way to shop.”

Charles Foster of East Point said shopping for post-Christmas sales was "overrated." 

“I got two things off the clearance rack. That’s all I got. It’s actually better a couple days before [Christmas] than it was today." 

Seth Bagwell noticed better prices before Christmas. He had a few new gift cards but left the mall empty handed. He said he planned to come back in a few days when he guessed prices would be lower.

“The best day to go is right before New Year’s. I worked in retail. That’s usually one of their biggest sales days because that's when you’re getting rid of the winter clothes and getting ready for spring. It’s not as crowded. You don’t get as much as that holiday rush anymore. Everybody’s died down from it a little bit.”

No official word on overall retail numbers yet, but early indications show holiday shoppers are spending more cautiously than in previous years.

Analysts are expecting 3-4 percent growth this holiday season compared to last year. That would be slightly lower than 2011 when there was 4-5 percent growth.

Sales the week after Christmas account for about 15% of all holiday sales.