It’s not Christmas time or the day after Thanksgiving, but the crowds at Hamilton Place mall Sunday were celebrating the event frugal shoppers have been waiting for all summer: the tax-free holiday.

And with parking lots packed and stores selling out of popular items, the holiday gave store managers a lot to celebrate, too.

“The economy has been biting into everybody’s budget,” said Jeff Hallman, general manager of Staples at Hamilton Place. “And this really gave us the shot in the arm we’ve been needing.”

With back-to-school shopping in full swing, consumers swarmed retailers such as Staples and Circuit City for computers, laptops and calculators.

At the Aeropostale store, employees stood on tables to direct traffic to the fitting rooms and a team of 12 followed customers around, refolding stacks of polo shirts and khaki pants.

For complete coverage see tomorrow’s Times Free Press.