LV malls report strong holiday sales

Monday, Dec. 22, 1997 | 10:55 a.m.

With Christmas falling on a Thursday this year, shoppers still have a couple of days to make their last-minute purchases.

But even if the late crowd doesn't turn out this week, mall managers say the Christmas and Hanukkah '97 season already has been a success.

Most of the managers of Southern Nevada's malls say crowds and sales have been up this year. Based on the city's growth and a high degree of consumer confidence brought upon by the region's vibrant economy, higher sales aren't much of a surprise.

But retailers are particularly watchful because competition is so great and the stakes are high -- the U.S. Department of Commerce reports 15 to 20 percent of the year's purchases occurs in December.

Nationally, the early returns from the International Council of Shopping Centers showed sales were up 1.7 percent for the week ending Dec. 14. For the season to date at that point, sales were up 2.9 percent over the previous year.

Locally, there are no instant statistics available to indicate whether Southern Nevadans are following the trend. Sales tax receipt counts will occur later in the month and local economists who study the Las Vegas area say there are no indices gauging retail strengths and weaknesses.

But if you defer to the anecdotal accounts of the mall managers, Christmas and Hanukkah have already been merry.

"We've had double-digit increases in both sales and traffic," said Alan Schmiedicker, general manager of the Galleria at Sunset, the Henderson mall marking only its second holiday season.

Schmiedicker said traffic counters at the mall entrances verify traffic up 13 to 14 percent and he said sales are up 12 to 15 percent.

Bob Touma, general manager of the Boulevard, anticipated Saturday, Sunday and today would be the busiest days for his 140 stores.

"People are waiting for bargains and sales," said Touma, who said November sales were down about 5 percent from the previous year, but are trending up between 5 and 8 percent now.

The calendar was responsible for the early lag -- there were fewer shopping days in November this year than last.

Fashion Show vice president and general manager Wendy Crawford said having the Festival of Trees and Lights at her mall provided a big boost in the days immediately after Thanksgiving. While she said her company doesn't disclose figures, she said sales were up and it was evident the special event sponsored by the Down Syndrome Organization brought more people to the mall.

Frank Wheat, general manager of the Meadows Mall, said daily sales aren't tracked there but that feedback from the merchants has been positive.