'Super Saturday' Signals Start Of Christmas Shopping Crunch Time
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – From the long lines to get into the Arden Fair Mall to the chaotic and tired crowds inside, it's clearly Christmas crunch time.
But on this "Super Saturday" before Christmas, Brian and Megan Stewart were making shopping part of the celebration.
It's their first Christmas as newlyweds.
"First one married, second Christmas together," Megan said.
They were on the hunt for last minute deals.
"We got our first apartment together the end of November, so we about doubled our bills before Christmas. So it's been a lot tighter," Megan said.
They're in luck. The National Retail Federation says as much as 40% of the season's sales happen in the 10 days before Christmas.
For the Sports Fever shop, a rough year for local teams has made it a tougher year for profits.
"We thrive off of local teams doing well, and when local teams don't do well we just don't do well in sales," a Sports Fever worker said.
Last year, "Super Saturday" beat Black Friday as the busiest shopping day of the year.
And despite wet weather on the way, recent surveys show some 17 percent of shoppers still haven't started holiday shopping yet.
All the more reason to get crafty and go homemade.
"We're making it work. A lot of thriftiness and I bake so," Brian said.