Christmas Eve at a Fayetteville mall: Last-minute shoppers fill local stores

This unofficial holiday fills malls and big box stores with last-minute shoppers each year. The hustle and bustle moves extra fast today, as time is running out to get gifts under the Christmas tree.

WRAL News visited Cross Creek Mall, located at 419 Cross Creek Mall in Fayetteville, Tuesday afternoon to find out why so many shoppers waited until the day before Christmas to finish buying gifts.

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Makayla Davis just got home from college, and she was doing last-minute shopping with her mom. She said, "I'm trying to find some hats for my boyfriend, but I can't find the Lids store anywhere."

Wilber Simmons, designated bag-carrier for his family, said, "We started with breakfast first thing this morning, and we've been here ever since!"

Simmons said this was the first opportunity he and his wife have had to go shopping together, due to their busy work schedules.

Mary Roberts said her niece and nephew had just arrived from New Jersey, and she wanted to make sure she picked the right gift for them. "This is their chance to shop," she said. "We are going to go look around today."

Most people in this wave of shoppers know exactly what they're looking for. Valerie O' Reilly said, "The one thing I want for Christmas is a camera."

While many shoppers bought a portion of their gifts online, there are some products they prefer to buy in stores, such as shoes or fine jewelry. Gwen Bell, for example, said, "You don't want to get your jewelry online. You want to get it from a family-owned jeweler."

As of 5 p.m., Cross Creek mall and other shopping centers were bustling, and it appeared that holiday shoppers were focused and on a mission.