Short holiday shopping season leads to retail surge

MISHAWAKA, Ind. -- With five less shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas in 2024, the window for shoppers to get their gifts is tighter than normal.

Local businesses inside the University Park Mall say they’re well-prepared, with most of them over-stocking and increasing inventory in the weeks prior to Thanksgiving.

The mall has seen increased foot-traffic over the past three weeks, with the typical lull following Black Friday missing from the retail calendar.

It’s expected that numbers continue to increase for businesses in the coming 15 days before Christmas.