Despite an ongoing recession, the holiday season was kind to many area businesses.
Jeff Coon, part-owner of Masey’s Jewelry in Summit, said the holiday season marked Masey’s best Christmas in the store’s six-year history.
“It was wonderful. Absolutely wonderful,” Coon said. “We had a great, great Christmas. It was a pleasant surprise.”
Pearls and bridal jewelry were the store’s top holiday items. Coon said Masey’s “sold almost every pearl in our case, literally.”
Coon attributed the increased sales to a combination of continued advertising and customers eager to make up for decreased spending in 2009.
“I think last year, everybody was scared to death and didn’t do as much for Christmas,” Coon said. “I think we’re going to have a great 2011. We’ve already continued our bridal sales in the first week of January. It’s going to be wonderful.”
Wizard Electronics also reported good Christmas sales. Co-owner Eric Hightower said the business had a good two-week burst around Christmas, largely attributed to the installation of AM/FM radios with iPod plug-ins and remote start units. Hightower said Wizard installed an average of two remote start units per day during the holiday season.
He added that sales improved over the 2009 holiday season, and he is hopeful for a good start in 2011.
“It was really OK,” Hightower said. “Right there at the end, we had a really good rush and the week after with people getting money for Christmas and needing stuff (installed).”
Pineapples Gifts & Accessories, which opened in October, had its first Christmas season. Owner C.J. Nason said the store set high expectations and quickly got into the holiday groove by participating in the Mistletoe & Magic open house event.
Nason said the store’s first month was good. November was better and sales figures doubled in December. Christmas items and “kissing crystals” were the store’s most popular items.
“We did phenomenal,” Nason said. “We set really high goals and met all of them. We were really impressed.”
However, with the holiday season passed, Nason said the store’s expectations for the first half of 2011 are slightly lowered.
“We still set really good goals,” she said. “There’s a holiday every month. We’ll carry merchandise appropriate to those.”
On the clothing front, Twice is Nice, a consignment shop on Main Street in McComb, also had a good holiday season according to owner Beverly Welch. “(Sales) were steady. We were blessed to have a good year.”
The holiday season was comparable to 2009 sales, with clothing, shoes, handbags and accessories at the forefront. Boutique style and better brand name clothing not available in Pike County also did brisk business.
“At our place, it’s always fashion,” Welch said.
The trend has continued into the new year with a productive January thus far.
Of special notice is the addition of a new department for wedding and party decoration rentals called Main Street Party Rentals.
“It’s looking like it’s going to be a very good success,” Welch said. “It’s going to be a good move for us.”
J.C. Penney manager Anthony Griffin said the store in Edgewood Mall had a noticeable improvement in sales over 2009.
“Christmas was actually pretty good,” Griffin said. “Our numbers were up compared to last year. Our men’s department and our boots kind of drove it.”
Griffin said it’s too early to get a read on the start of the new year; the store’s fiscal year doesn’t begin until February. However, he is optimistic that 2011 will be stronger.
“I think everybody reached a calmness,” he said in reference to the recession’s affect on sales in 2009.
He added that the home division, Valentine’s Day and Easter will be key components.
And at McComb Market, manager Gene Moak said December marked the best month in the five-year-old store’s history.
“We had a great Christmas week,” he said. “It was probably the best week we ever had.”
Moak said the market’s store-prepared Christmas dinner sales were fair, but sales of hams and turkeys boomed.
“We’re looking for a real promising year this year with sales increases,” Moak said.
