British retailers are anxious to avoid a repeat of last year’s trading pattern when the surge in low-margin sales was followed by weaker-than-expected demand, as shoppers held back in the hope of further discounts.
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Now, Black Friday has moved onto Thanksgiving Day itself.
But for many, shopping online was turning out to be a more comfortable alternative.
She said she didn’t think she’d like it since she usually buys personalized gifts at places like Etsy, but she had fun.
The National Retail Federation expects sales in November and December to increase 3.7 percent to $630.5 billion.
Hundreds of people lined nine levels of escalators Thursday at Macy’s Herald Square in Manhattan to get a head start on the deals.
“Black Friday isn’t what it used to be”, said Keith Nelson, 54, who works in security in the Brooklyn and was third in line after arriving about 2:15. The department store has a good range of brands, where the prices are generally much cheaper than Australian branded boutiques.
While many retailers won’t open until tomorrow morning, others like JC Penny and Best Buy opened their doors today to welcome eager bargain hunters.
“I saw all the people outside waiting in line”, he said. But it’s expected that more than three times the number of people who shopped on Thanksgiving will venture out to shop on the day after the holiday known as Black Friday.
“Horrible. I got what I wanted in 10 minutes and stood over an hour and a half in line”, he says.
He had never shopped on Thanksgiving Day until this year.
“Normally we would always like peace out of the house after Thanksgiving after things are put away, so like 7:00 or 9:00, totally okay but this 3 p.m.it’s a little different”, said Dron. Big box stores like Target and Walmart have even made their floor plans available online. Toys R Us stores opened at 5 p.m. Target, Macy’s and Sears opened at 6 p.m. Some stores opted to not open on Thanksgiving. Still, he said he had time to eat two Thanksgiving meals with family earlier in the day.
“We’re a company with a very rich family heritage, and family is very important to Dillard’s and we believe our associates need that time at home with their families before they go the extra mile in the next few weeks”, spokesman Julie Bull said.
“So we’re not coming”, McCarthy said, and invited his mother to his house for dinner.
Another frustrated user tweeted: “shouldn’t advertise doing Black Friday if your website can’t handle it. Trying to pay and keeps crashing”.
For many shoppers, the savings justified standing in line for hours; discounts on sought-after items such as big-screen televisions, cameras, computers, gaming systems and movies discounted by Target.
“That’s a bummer”, she said.
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The holiday shopping season has officially kicked off with the “Super Bowl” of shopping: Black Friday.
