While much has been made of certain days for Christmas shoppers — think Black Friday, Cyber Monday or Small Business Saturday — Orscheln Farm and Home has its own entry: “Busy as Heck” Sunday.
Huge throngs of shoppers flocked to Orscheln at 1918 N. State St. Sunday evening for a store-wide sale in which everything went on sale at a 20 percent discount.
The parking lot was crammed with cars from 4:30 on, while shoppers loaded their carts with an assortment of goods, from animal feed and tools to Christmas gifts, such as clothing or toys. Those who couldn’t fill their lists with one cart-load, simply unloaded their goodies and returned to the store for the next round.
Store officials took steps to alleviate the crush of shoppers, Orscheln manager Robert Dehn said.
They quietly began the sale about an hour earlier than expected because the store already was filled.
“And we still couldn’t keep up,” Dehn said.
A crew of 18 employees, three times the normal Sunday afternoon staff, was kept â¨humming along at a brisk pace to assist shoppers in search of particular items.
“We even hired one employee just to help push out carts and load cars,” Dehn said. “It’s been quite a turnout.”
A table with brownies, cookies and other sweets was offered to the shoppers patiently waiting in line.
“They’ve been pretty understanding,” Dehn said of the shoppers. “They recognize it’s pretty busy in here.”
Orscheln will continue with holiday savings through the Christmas season.
A special insert in Tuesday’s Register will detail the next potential savings.
Droves turn out for Orscheln sale
