No hats, no heaters, no problem – until the weather dips below freezing.
During a week of record low temperatures, students seeking winter merchandise were greeted by empty shelves.
Michelle Hart, a UF chemical engineering sophomore, was one of the many glove-seekers who had no luck at Wal-Mart, Target or Ross Tuesday and Wednesday.
“I called Wal-Mart, and they said a new shipment had come in but that, like, 20 people had bought them in the last few minutes,” Hart said. “By the time I got there, they were gone, so I had to keep looking.”
After repeated failures, she had success at Kohl’s on Archer Road.
Jennifer Lee, a UF political science sophomore, also had a difficult time finding gloves, ending her search after repeated failure at Forever 21, Express and Macy’s in The Oaks Mall.
Donna Spiers, a zone merchandise supervisor at the Wal-Mart in Butler Plaza, said gloves are not the only hot commodity. Hats and heaters have also been disappearing from store shelves.
Spiers said about 150 pairs of gloves have been put out and sold each day, and hats and heaters completely sold out Tuesday and Wednesday.
“The heaters are selling as fast as we can get them into the store right now,” she said.
