Thousands of people flocked to Chicago's State Street on Christmas Eve to grab last-minute gifts for the holidays.
"We could have started in March, but who wants to do that? Wait to the last minute! Feel the rush," customer Robert Patten said. "It’s the excitement of it, the adrenaline that we feel and being out in the midst of everybody."
Patten was not alone in his procrastination.
“I’m in school, so ordering things from college, coming home, Chicago has everything, so I did wait," Brielle Holmes said, who was shopping for her boyfriend.
"I work so much so I haven’t had time," fellow customer Felicia Nelson said. "But Macy's on State Street, that’s my favorite.”
The National Retail Federation said consumer spending this year is expected to reach a record $902 per person on average for gifts, food and décor, about $25 more per person than last year.
There was also a shorter shopping season between Thanksgiving and the winter holidays this year, due to the former falling on its latest possible date.
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