Weather chills Christmas sales

Only 12 days before Christmas, sales froze solid under the weight of Springfield's record 14 1/2-inch snowfall. The weather conditions of Dec. 13 prevented Battlefield Mall vendors from opening their doors to Christmas shoppers; Campbell 16 Cin drew the curtain on the day's films; and Bass Pro Shops closed several hours early.

Meanwhile, continued below-normal temperatures have caused many shoppers to pack it in early in the evenings, according to Battlefield Mall Marketing Director Kristy Henson. She said the mall closed at 10 p.m. an hour early Dec. 16 because the wind chill factor was minus 35 degrees.

"Obviously, we don't like to close the mall this time of year, but when you're up against Mother Nature, you just have to look at the safety and concern for the customers and employees. Financially, it's a hit to us," Henson said.

She said members of mall management were confident that the mall would recover its losses from the Dec. 13 shutdown because there were still 10 full shopping days left before Christmas. The decision to close the mall came at 9 a.m. after crews hired to clear the parking lots found they couldn't keep up with the snowfall.

"The phone started ringing at 5 a.m., and we kept encouraging (the vendors) to call back and we would have a decision. A lot of the store owners and managers have to drive in from the rural areas, so they were in favor of closing," Henson said. She said the mall closed for a day two years ago after an ice storm.

Bass Pro Retail Manager Doug Bowen said the mall's decision to close Dec. 13 influenced Bass Pro's decision to begin sending its 60 to 70 employees home that afternoon and close early, despite the holiday season. He said Bass Pro also sent a member of management to test the road conditions before the decision was made to close.

Like the mall, Bass Pro also saw a slowdown in crowds in the days following the record snowfall because of the frosty temperatures.

"Certainly it has a business impact, and it wasn't just the one day. The residual effects after the storm were such that people just couldn't get out of their houses in the rural areas. People were doing more just to stay warm and survive than doing their Christmas shopping," Bowen said.

He added that Bass Pro is enjoying strong sales this holiday season, but the number and kinds of sales this year are markedly different from last year.

"There was a lot of panic buying last year because of Y2K. That had a huge impact on purchases last year, because people were buying everything from generators and fuel-storage cans to gas grills, warm clothing, gun safes and ammo," Bowen said. "That's a once every 1,000 years issue, and it was a big deal for most retailers."

Despite Campbell 16 Cin's first-ever full-day shutdown Dec. 13 and a bit of a slowdown in evening attendance since then, Managing Director Denny Goins predicts a 20 percent increase in ticket sales this season compared to last year.

Goins said more children's movies, such as "The Grinch" and "The Emperor's New Groove," as well as the much-anticipated "Cast Away" and "The Family Man" are increasing sales this year, even though fewer patrons are venturing out of their homes when the wind chill drops below zero.

He said Campbell 16 Cin's management decided at 10:30 a.m. to close the theater complex for the entire day Dec. 13 because of the forecast for continuing inclement weather that day. In previous inclement-weather situations, the theater remained closed during the afternoon but opened for evening shows. The theater complex employs about 70 people, Goins said.

"Extreme cold weather keeps (customers) in, especially the seniors and children. Parents aren't going to let kids out in the cold and wind, and teenagers usually aren't allowed to drive in the snow," Goins said. "It really hurt our business a lot the weekend of Dec. 15-17, and we're hoping for no more of that."