Grandparents in search of children's clothes are among the first throngs of St. Joseph's early holiday shoppers.

It may be a sign that at least some consumers prefer to fill their shopping lists ahead of the upcoming rush.

J.C. Penney store manager Jason Schimke said he's noticed an uptick in holiday traffic in recent weeks.

"Definitely our shoppers are shopping early," Mr. Schimke said. "Our customers are telling us they're shopping for Christmas."

Mr. Schimke said while it's difficult to gauge holiday shopping trends, it's not unusual to see the early shoppers at the department store.

"There's definitely gift buying going on around the store," he said. The children's clothing and appliances departments are among the most popular areas at the moment, he added.

In the meantime, Mr. Schimke said Penney's staff is preparing for the expected Black Friday onslaught.

A check of several other retailers showed a steady increase in holiday shopping. Officials at both the North Belt Wal-Mart and North Belt Kmart locations reported recent surges in Christmas-related purchases. For example, Kmart's layaway program is proving to be a popular means of purchasing toys.

A Wal-Mart official said the company's low prices help to lure Christmas shoppers, who are also searching for Thanksgiving goods. According to the company's research, 70 percent of consumers reported plans to start their holiday toy shopping before Halloween - with two of 10 saying they intend to finish by then.

On Wednesday, Wal-Mart announced plans to keep all of its non-24-hour stores open for the Thanksgiving weekend and to take steps to control anticipated crowds. Last year, a temporary Wal-Mart employee at a New York store was trampled to death in a rush of Black Friday shoppers. The retailer will begin its day-after-Thanksgiving sales at 5 a.m. Nov. 27.

St. Joseph Electronics hasn't noticed any major trend of Christmas shopping yet, but expects interest to build closer to Thanksgiving.

"It's kind of hit and miss right now," said J.D. Stout, the store's main installer.

The National Retail Federation said U.S. consumers plan to spend an average of $682.74 on holiday-related shopping, a 3.2 percent drop from last year's $705.01.

Ray Scherer can be reached at rscherer@npgco.com. The Associated Press contributed to this story.