Laura Uboldi of Eureka said she had been waiting in line for an hour to buy four towels. some early bird shoppers were still in line benefiting from the tail-end of the sale. Kohl’s was featuring an early bird special from 7 a.m.
Barnes estimated a couple hundred people were waiting in line outside the store’s doors earlier in the morning. ”It’s been very busy just as we anticipated,” she said. Barnes herself opened the Mervyns store as a sales associate 20 years ago, and closed it down as the store manager late last year. Kohl’s store manager Jucille Barnes said the transition from Mervyns to Kohl’s has been very smooth, especially with the hiring of many former Mervyns employees. ”The lighting itself will bring us more traffic,” she said. Now with Kohl’s operating out of the spot, she expects some moderate increases in foot traffic. Stores saw many customers with Kohl’s bags and some found Kohl’s receipts on their floors.īethany Rosa, Wet Seal’s assistant store manager, said when Mervyns first closed down, the darkened corridor was a little less enticing for customers. The Kohl’s opening also brought more traffic to nearby stores in the mall. “From Eureka to San Diego, these 30 new Kohl’s stores are providing 4,200 Californians with jobs and helping pump up local economies, while also being good community partners in the process.” ”California is one of the largest consumer markets in the world and we congratulate Kohl’s on its increased investment here,” he said in a statement Wednesday. Arnold Schwarzenegger congratulated Kohl’s on its grand openings statewide. Mervyns declared bankruptcy last October, followed by Gottschalks in April. Thirty-five of the new Kohl’s stores are former Mervyns locations. Kohl’s is operating out of the former Mervyns site inside the mall and is one of 37 new Kohl’s stores opening this fall in California. ”We made it a combination day,” Wendt said, holding a Kohl’s bag with some newly purchased Christmas presents.
Lorilei Wendt made sure to plan her in-town appointments and errands around the big day, making the trek to Eureka’s Bayshore Mall from Klamath. With Humboldt County residents traveling from far and near, Kohl’s grand opening sale on Wednesday attracted thrifty shoppers and browsers alike.