This will be the last Christmas for two of Dalton's most established stores. Owner Jerry Deal said Carol's Fashions is closing after almost 53 years in business. Carol's Fashions in Chatsworth will also be closing its doors.
"We opened in March 1972," Deal said. "I'm 79 and I'm retiring. My kids have been in it, but they've sort of got tired of it.
Between the economy and competing with online and my age, it is just time to go." He also operated Trendy You stores in the Dalton Mall and in the Calhoun Outlet Marketplace. "We just closed the last of them," he said.
Going-out-of business sales are already underway at Dalton's Big Lots store. Manager Kena Bernard said she doesn't know exactly when the store will close. "We just found out Thursday we are closing," she said.
That's when the national retail chain announced it would be closing all its remaining stores. The chain declared bankruptcy in September and closed some 400 stores. It said then it hoped to sell the remaining stores, but on Thursday the chain announced it did not expect to complete that sale.
Dalton resident Gail Bethune was doing some last-minute Christmas shopping Tuesday. She said she is sorry Big Lots is going out of business. "I've been shopping there for something like 20 years," she said.
"But I guess all stores go out of business eventually.".
