Black Friday Morning Quarterback
I didn’t think I’d do it. But I did. I hit the stores the morning of Black Friday.
Did I find crazed hordes of shoppers, fighting over the latest hot toy? Nope. All in all, the experience was quite civilized…which probably doesn’t bode well for retailers.
Admittedly, I wasn’t in line waiting for pricey electronics at 4 a.m. I headed out the door around 7:30—the kids get me up early anyway and there were a few advertised deals I wanted to take advantage of , so I trundled out into the morning air.
There was a lot of traffic headed towards the mall area, and when I got to Target the parking lot was full. Then suddenly, the shopping gods smiled upon me and a space opened up near the door. I grabbed a cart, went in and headed right for the toy department.
This was the only area of the store that was remotely crowded, and the many moms (and one or two dads) there were behaving sanely. There was pretty much plenty of everything everyone wanted, so all were merry and bright.
And the long lines at checkout? They were nonexistent. Plenty of cashiers and no waiting.
I hit the mall next, running into Macy’s to pick up a new Christmas tree skirt for 50% off and then into J. Jill to look at sweaters. The latter was a ghost town compared to other parts of the mall, which could explain why it is for sale. Next was KB Toys, which was full of shoppers but sparsely stocked. (Anyone know where I can score some Bakugans? Seriously, I need someone to hook me up. My 5-year-old is jonesing for em’.)
Next was Gymboree, which was the busiest store I saw by far. This was because everything was 30% off until noon, and if you had one, you could use a 20% off coupon as well. I and several other moms went back for a second helping when we realized the double dip opportunity.
My point to sharing all this—and I do have one—is that on a robust Black Friday, shoppers feel like they survived a war to get their bargains. I didn’t even feel like it was a skirmish.
How about you? Did you hit the stores? What was your experience? Or do you operate a retail outlet? How was the weekend?
November 30th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
My wife convinced me to get up and be in the Target parking lot at 6am. (She had already been shopping for over an hour on the other side of town.) I get there about 5:50 AM, sit in my car, sip my coffee and wait 5 minutes. After watching the people, assessing the line and becoming increasingly terrified, I start up my car and drive back home. True story. She went there that afternoon.
December 1st, 2008 at 5:27 pm
Beth, how could you? I slept in and my wallet and brain are better for it. My wife works in retail and she said it was a busy weekend, but fortunately for her, her store opened at 9, not some ungodly hour like 5 or 6. As for me, I bought only one item this weeekend and did so online, vs. waiting in a line.