Edgewater Mall seeing more traffic than ever this holiday season

National news outlets report that more people than ever are shopping from home, but it might be a different story on the Gulf Coast.

Edgewater Mall General Manager Terry Powell tells News 25 that the Biloxi shopping center has seen an influx of guests since November and expects more this coming week.

The U.S. Department of Commerce reports that retail and food services only rose 0.3 percent nationally, but here on the Coast, the bump in shoppers has seen a percentage increase in the double digits according to Powell.

Thousands are filtering through the mall every week, even more than in years before COVID. Powell said, “I think people just want to get out. They want to be able to touch what they’re going to get. And a lot of times when you order something online, you don’t know exactly what you’re going to get, and then the hassle of trying to return it. You buy it here, you need to return it, you can return it here. The traffic’s actually better now. We’ve seen increased sales overall, and traffic’s been a lot brisker.”

Edgewater Mall is extending its shopping hours from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. starting Saturday and will be open 10 to 6 on Christmas Eve.