Day after Christmas crowds a little light at many stores

ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 WOFL) - Many shoppers bracing for packed crowds at local stores on the day after Christmas found the rush was a little light this year.

Parking lots at a lot of Central Florida stores resembled that of a usual or slightly busier than usual day on Tuesday, but many shoppers said nothing compared to what they’ve seen in past years.

Employees at the Target in Lake Mary said they initially had a line waiting to shop their discounts when they opened, but the crowd quickly became steady. They said even returned items to the store, which tend to be the big talking point on the day after Christmas, resembled that of a normal day as well.

"Not very crowded; very surprising,” said Edgar Dworsky from Consumer World.

Dworsky said he visited stores in Massachusetts Tuesday morning to find similarly light crowds. He expects many people are taking advantage of return policies at many stores that allow for holiday returns into January, but there may be other reasons for the slow down.

A big one: online shopping.

Dworsky said a lot of people did choose to shop online this holiday season. It would make sense then that a lot more returns will be going back to online retailers instead of the traditional stores people used to line up at on this day.

Dworsky recommends checking with the individual retailer you need to find out how long you have to return unwanted gifts.