Retail Roundup | Donations being accepted for new Goodwill store in Myrtle Beach area

Goodwill has started accepting donations for the store it plans to open in Carolina Forest early next year.

A series of weekly donation drives kicks off this Saturday at 4100 Postal Way beside TD Bank. Residents can drop of donations – clothes, furniture, picture frames, shoes, other household items – between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. The donation drives will continue during those hours every Saturday for the next few weeks, except Dec. 24 and Dec. 31 because of the holidays.

Those donating will get a tax-deductible receipt, 10 percent off a purchase and a chance to win a 1-minute shopping spree when the Carolina Forest store opens.

Construction continues on the store at 2164 Oakheart Road in Carolina Forest, next to the shopping center that used to house Piggly Wiggly. The store aims to open by late February, said Erin Burneyko, a spokeswoman for Goodwill Industries of Lower South Carolina.

Goodwill already has had two other donation drives for the Carolina Forest store, one in late October and another last month.

This will be Goodwill’s fifth store in the area. It opened a store in North Myrtle Beach at 3336 U.S. 17 South in the former Bi-Lo in September and also has stores in Little River, Conway and at U.S. 17 Bypass near S.C. 544.

Holiday shopping off to strong start

The first week of the official holiday shopping season along the Grand Strand has been a busy one for area malls that are feeding off the Black Friday frenzy of earlier-than-ever Thanksgiving night and midnight store openings.

And here’s no surprise as the shopping season gears up: Consumers want deals.

“They are certainly looking for the best merchandise at the best price,” said Suzanne Oden, general manager of Inlet Square Mall. “They are being smart shoppers. We are seeing a lot of coupons redeemed.”

That desire for deals also has paid off for Tanger Outlets off U.S. 501 and U.S. 17, General Manager Nick Barrett said.

“We think there is an appetite for value,” he said. “More people are looking to save this year…so they look to outlets for a better value.”

Earlier-than-ever Black Friday openings fueled better traffic than last year at shopping centers here and across the country. But the shopping patterns were different this year because of it, local shopping center managers said.

Tanger Outlets were among the first to open Thanksgiving night at 10, with a line of customers waiting. Shoppers then moved to stores such as Best Buy, Kohl’s and Target that opened at midnight then wrapped up their overnight shopping with a stop at retailers such as Coastal Grand mall that opened at 3 a.m.

“We were packed – I mean packed,” said Steve McGhee, general manager of Coastal Grand. “We had lines at the door – all four [mall] entrance doors.”

But that meant that the morning hours, between 8 a.m. or so and noon, were a bit lighter than previous Black Fridays, shopping center managers said.

But the Black Friday momentum has continued through this week, they said.

“Traffic this week has been surprisingly brisk,” Barrett said. “It appears that [the holiday shopping season] started out on the right foot.”

The only thing missing to make Black Friday even bigger: cool weather, McGhee said.

Colder temperatures drive shoppers into malls instead of walking the beach or enjoying the outdoors, he said. It also helps fuel sales of coats, gloves and other winter merchandise.

Shipping company opens in Pawleys Island

Postal Annex, a franchise that specializes in shipping and providing business services, has opened in Pawleys Island.

The 1,100-square-foot store ships packages, does passport photos and provides business services such as laminating and binding. The store is at 11405 Ocean Highway in the Coastal Federal Center next to Fresh Market.

Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays, though hours will be extended for the holidays, owner Renee Eckley said. Call 314-9072 to reach the store.