DaySpring held it's annual Outlet Store Sale in the company's new warehouse for the first time this year, attracting crowds of holiday shoppers to Siloam Springs.
Cars filled up both sides of DaySpring's property on Arkansas Highway 59 on Thursday, including the grassy areas, and the Benton County Sheriff's Office provided traffic control. People on tour buses, as individuals or with friends get the best deals on Christian greeting cards, calenders and gifts, according to Brenda Turner, communications director for the company. At one point, there were more than 450 vehicles parked on DaySpring's property, she said.
Thursday was one of the busiest days of the sale because it is the day that most church buses arrive, Turner said. People lined up and waited for the doors to be opened on Thursday morning and the longest wait in the check out line on Thursday was over an hour and 45 minutes. Friday was quieter, although there was still a steady stream of customers and plenty of shoppers filling the aisles of the warehouse.
Kaitlyn Dinger of Siloam Springs came to the sale two days in a row. Dinger said she came on Thursday and scoped out the items she wanted, but with a young toddler in tow she was intimidated by the long lines.
"It was crazy," she said. "The line was wrapped around the store."
Dinger even heard some women in line calling their husbands to bring them lunch while they waited. She returned on Friday when the sale was quieter and brought her mother along. She was shopping for Crayola products and Christmas gifts for her toddler.
This year is not the first time Dinger has attended the outlet sale. She keeps coming back year after year to do Christmas shopping, and especially appreciates the meaningful gifts that DaySpring offers.
"I love it," she said. "I look forward to it each year."
Rosemary Hanes of Adair, Okla., and Mary Gibson of Claremore, Okla., were carrying shopping bags loaded down with items as they walked out of the warehouse on Friday morning. The two women said they have been making the drive to Siloam Springs for the sale for five or six years in a row. On Friday, they were stocking up on Christmas cards, as well as baby cards and birthday cards for the coming year.
Turner said that greeting cards and calenders are some of the most popular items at the sale. DaySpring also offers gifts for all ages and home decorations. Many people come on church buses to shop and see the fall foliage in the Ozarks, she said. While they are in Siloam Springs, they often stop at restaurants to eat and shop at other local businesses.
Marilyn Richardson came with a group of nine people on a church bus from the Oregon Flat Baptist Church in Bergman, Ark. She said she comes each year to have a good time, see the scenery and spend some time shopping with "the girls."
Turner said that one group came from as far as Oklahoma City on Thursday, while several other groups came from the Tulsa area. In the past, people have even traveled from Tennessee for the event.
Pat Stoner came from Anderson, Mo., to attend the sale with her friend Carol Showers. It was Stoner's first time to attend the sale, but Showers had been several times before.
"I love it. My box is full and I'm only half way down the first aisle," Stoner said, adding that she plans to come back next year.
General News on 11/23/2016