Warm weather draws shoppers to post-holiday sales

AURORA, Ill. (WLS) -- The warm weather plus day-after-Christmas sales made outdoor malls the place to shop on Monday.

Whatever Santa forgot, shoppers can find at the Chicago Premium Outlets in west suburban Aurora, where people spent the day returning Christmas gifts and spending all their new gift card money.

MORE: What is Boxing Day and how did it get its name?

The day after Christmas is a buying frenzy with clearance sales and 40 to 60 percent off merchandise - savvy shoppers know that December 26 is the real holiday.

"I wanted to hit Express before that last sale was over with!" shopper Andre Newson said.

"There's a lot of sales and it's perfect weather to shop at an outdoor mall," shopper Madelyn Marshall said.

Pam Hamil, the director of marketing and business at the Chicago Premium Outlets in Aurora, said that every year on this day the mall gets packed with people spending newly gifted gift cards or returning presents.

"They are coming back, returning the things that may not fit. What I like to see is people leave with bags!" Hamil said.

Theory store manager Justin Peeples also arrived early to make sure everything was straightened out before the rush. He said that during the week between Christmas and New Year's, buyers can find sales comparable to Black Friday.

"We do really big promotions after Christmas, after Thanksgiving, so this is a great time to shop!" Peeples said.

Those deals, combined with the fact most people did not have to work and the weather was warmer than usual, means Boxing Day was really shopping day.