Customer traffic picked up Thursday and continued this morning at local businesses as a result of the overnight and today's snow storm.
Customers spent yesterday and today stocking up on groceries, and purchasing shovels and salt.Warsaw Wal-Mart store manager Gary Elders said the store was extremely busy Thursday from 3 to 8 p.m. and customer traffic continued this morning.
Customers stocked up on items including milk, bread, cereal, eggs and chips, he said.
"Customers shopped yesterday to prepare for last night's snow storm, and I think they wanted to make sure they had snacks for their kids in case school was cancelled," Elders said.
He said customers continued to purchase the items this morning since local schools are closed today.
Elders said Wal-Mart has sold out of snowblowers, but said he was not sure how many were sold.
He said Wal-Mart does not expect to get any more snowblowers in because it is late in the winter season.
"This is the third biggest snow storm of the year and the third time we ran out of snowblowers," Elders said.
Harold "Butch" Schapson, owner of Ace Hardware, Warsaw, and Sherman Linn's said both businesses were busy with customers all day Thursday.
He said customers at Ace Hardware purchased snow shovels and ice melt to prepare for the snow storm. He also said Sherman Linn's was busy all day Thursday with customers purchasing groceries.
"There was good warning yesterday of the snow storm so customers were preparing for the weather by purchasing baking items because I think they knew they would be inside today," Schapson said.
Warsaw Big R store manager Todd Hurt said customers spent Thursday purchasing gloves, shovels, ice melt and animal food.
R & B Car Co. manager Chad Laughlin said employees put vehicles in their showroom and filled the maintenance garage with vehicles last night before going home to protect vehicles.
"We made sure vehicles also were moved to the front of our business so snow plows could plow snow that was behind our business," Laughlin said.
He said the vehicles will not be moved back until it stops snowing.
He said drivers have been looking at four-wheel-drive vehicles, and the business had stocked an extra inventory of four-wheel drive vehicles.
