SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (CBS) – The Kardashian sisters, minus pregnant sister Kourtney, drew hundreds of fans to the Sears store at Woodfield Mall on Friday.

Fans began to line up at 3:30 p.m. Thursday for the two-hour, 5 p.m. Friday promotional appearance.  By 10:30 a.m., there were 500 people in line – the cutoff for those who hoped to participate in a meet-and-greet with the reality-TV stars and have photos taken with them.

Still, hundreds more joined the line, which snaked along the sidewalk in front of the Sears Woodfield store and around the corner.

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When the Kardashians appeared, walking down a stairway shortly after 5 p.m. Friday, it was Kim who led the way.

This is what the crush of fans looked like Friday at Woodfield Mall, where the Kardashian sisters made a promotional appearance. (Allen Maniscalco/CBS 2)

“It was crazy,” said Nicolette Cerami , who traveled to Schaumburg with two of her friends.  “Everyone was just screaming exciting.  Everyone’s phones were out.  Everyone was taking videos of them.”

“They looked gorgeous,” she said.  “It was amazing.”

The Kardshian sisters’ mother joined them at Woodfield, but the third Kardashian sister, Kourtney, was not on hand.  By a speaker phone hookup, she told the crowd that she was advised not to fly because of her pregnancy.

Some fans said they were hoping for word that the famed family would open a Kardashian-themed store in the Chicago area.   Similar stores are already open in Miami, New York and Los Angeles.  But no such announcement was made.