Area stores report bright business in holiday cheer

By KATHY DAY and BRYAN CORLISS

Herald Writer

Holiday decorations are lighting up business for some area merchants.

At the Everett Mall Rite-Aid on Friday, shopper Katie Winders was pacing off 45 feet, the length of a strand of icicle lights that she was thinking about purchasing. "One of those is enough for the front of the house," she told her daughter.

While she said she tries not to buy lights every year, she said this was the year to replace some, to buy a new color, probably blue, and to get some to cover the bushes in front of her house.

Next, though, she said she has to persuade her husband to do the hard part and get the lights up on their Lake Stevens home.

While a clerk at Rite-Aid said few customers seemed to be following Winder’s urge to light her house, Andrew Sandoval, manager of the Marysville Kmart, said it’s common to see people go through the checkout line with nothing but lights.

"We have that all the time," he said. "They come in and buy basketloads of decorations."

The day after Thanksgiving traditionally is one of store’s top-selling days for lights and other ornaments, with the best sales of the season running for about two weekends before it tapers off.

"If you haven’t decorated your house by the 15th, you’re probably not going to be doing it," Sandoval said. He added that sales started early this year, a factor he attributed in part to the good weather.

At Emery’s Garden in Lynnwood, which itself is all lit up, activity was "really brisk," said general manager Marlis Korber. "We’re not seeing the panic yet. That usually comes later."

But Emery’s is seeing what she described as "the planner," who is moving methodically into the holiday season, as well as lots of browsers.

"I’m not sure what it is, maybe the new millennium, but this year I have a sense that it’s a year of flash and glitter," Korber said.

Emery’s hot-selling items have been bright colors, bright lights and big candles, as well as a lot of natural garlands and fresh greenery.

Mary Tont at Wight’s Home and Garden in Lynnwood, another landmark for holiday shoppers, said the store is "selling tons of things. It’s better than past years."

Wight’s shoppers seem to be drawn to the larger items like finials, tree tops that hang from the ceiling, she said.

In addition to lots of icicle lights, she said shoppers are attracted to various theme lights with candy canes or harlequins or different color combinations.

Themes seem to be turning heads at Monroe’s Ben Franklin Crafts and Frames, said manager April Siben.

"People are following home decor themes and coordinating colors more," she said, noting that combinations like pink, gold and mauve or blue and white are big.

Only a few people have come in and bought the proverbial store so they can do a whole new theme, she said, and they seem to be from Bellevue and other Eastside communities. "Shoppers from Monroe, Snohomish, our more regular customers, buy a few things to add to what they already have."

New kinds of lights are making cash registers ring, Siben added, naming clear iridescent pine cones and rope lights as popular choices.

Kmart’s Sandoval said icicle lights are still very hot. And he agreed that the rope lights are doing well this year because they are easier to hang.

He put up his own lights last weekend. "The weather was perfect," he added. "If I didn’t put them up early, I’d never get them up."

Talk to us

More in Local News

FILE - A sign hangs at a Taco Bell on May 23, 2014, in Mount Lebanon, Pa. Declaring a mission to liberate "Taco Tuesday" for all, Taco Bell asked U.S. regulators Tuesday, May 16, 2023, to force Wyoming-based Taco John's to abandon its longstanding claim to the trademark. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
Hepatitis A confirmed in Taco Bell worker in Everett, Lake Stevens

The health department sent out a public alert for diners at two Taco Bells on May 22 or 23.

VOLLI’s Director of Food & Beverage Kevin Aiello outside of the business on Friday, May 19, 2023 in Marysville, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Coming soon to Marysville: indoor pickleball, games, drinks

“We’re very confident this will be not just a hit, but a smash hit,” says co-owner Allan Jones, who is in the fun industry.

Everett
Detectives: Unresponsive baby was exposed to fentanyl at Everett hotel

An 11-month-old boy lost consciousness Tuesday afternoon. Later, the infant and a twin sibling both tested positive for fentanyl.

Cassie Franklin (left) and Nick Harper (right)
Report: No wrongdoing in Everett mayor’s romance with deputy mayor

An attorney hired by the city found no misuse of public funds. Texts between the two last year, however, were not saved on their personal phones.

Firearm discovered by TSA officers at Paine Field Thursday morning, May 11, 2023, during routine X-ray screening at the security checkpoint. (Transportation Security Administration)
3 guns caught by TSA at Paine Field this month — all loaded

Simple travel advice: Unpack before you pack to make sure there’s not a gun in your carry-on.

Heavy traffic northbound on 1-5 in Everett, Washington on August 31, 2022.  (Kevin Clark / The Herald)
To beat the rush this Memorial Day weekend, go early or late

AAA projects busy airports, ferries and roads over the holiday weekend this year, though still below pre-pandemic counts.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Snohomish in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Troopers: DUI crash leaves 1 in critical condition in Maltby

A drunken driver, 34, was arrested after her pickup rear-ended another truck late Tuesday, injuring a Snohomish man, 28.

Housing Hope CEO Donna Moulton raises her hand in celebration of the groundbreaking of the Housing Hope Madrona Highlands on Tuesday, May 23, 2023 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
$30M affordable housing project to start construction soon in Edmonds

Once built, dozens of families who are either homeless or in poverty will move in and receive social and work services.

Ashley Morrison, left, and her mother Cindi Morrison. (Photo provided by Cindi Morrison)
Everett’s ‘Oldest Young Cat Lady’ legacy continues after death

On social media, Ashley Morrison, 31, formed a worldwide community to talk about cats and mental health. Her mom wants to keep it going.

Most Read