Crowds swarm to Black Friday deals
Some shopping sprees stalled by bank, retailer glitches
Millions of bargain-seekers flocked to stores nationwide in search of the best Black Friday deals, and though analysts say one of the biggest shopping days of the year drew large crowds, the holiday wasn’t without its glitches.
In the Bay State, Eastern Bank said it couldn’t deliver direct deposits to some accounts, leaving customers without cash they planned to spend at stores.
“On black friday??? Thank you for motivating me to close my account,” one customer wrote in response to Eastern Bank on Twitter.
The issues, a bank spokesman said, were caused by a problem at FIS, one of the companies that provides services to banks around the world.
Eastern Bank said the glitch was resolved by midday.
Nationally, Macy’s had trouble processing credit card payments at some stores. One woman took to Twitter to say she left about $300 worth of merchandise at the checkout counter because her payment couldn’t be processed.
The issues came as the department store was reporting an otherwise banner day. Jeff Gennette, the company’s chief executive, said customer counts were higher and business was better — particularly in the Northeast — compared to last year, even with fewer promotions.
Mark Whiting, general manager of the Northshore Mall, which is home to two separate Macy’s locations, said it was clear who won the day.
“They amount of Macy’s bags that are being carried out of the mall is absolutely exceptional,” Whiting said. “What they’ve done today has been amazing.”
Whiting said foot traffic was strong throughout the day, estimating the parking lot was still 90 percent full at about 2 p.m.
“It’s been a fantastic day, absolutely from the very beginning,” he said. “Right from the beginning, we’ve been as busy as we can be. We’re seeing crowds that are as strong if not stronger than last year.”
With the jobless rate at a 17-year low of 4.1 percent and consumer confidence stronger than a year ago, analysts project healthy sales increases for November and December. The National Retail Federation trade group expects sales for that period to at least match last year’s rise of 3.6 percent and estimates online spending and other nonstore sales will rise between 11 and 15 percent.
About 69 percent of Americans, or 164 million people, intend to shop at some point during the fiveday period from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday, according to a survey released by the NRF. It expected Black Friday to remain the busiest day, with about 115 million people planning to shop then.
At CambridgeSide, shoppers streamed in and out of stores all day. Kendy Derival said yesterday was his first time Black Friday shopping, and he vowed to return next year despite missing out on some deals he was hoping for.
“All the good deals, everything I wanted, was gone,” he said, adding that he picked up a new vacuum cleaner and a few sweaters.
Many small businesses have been gearing up for Small Business Saturday today, hoping unique wares and a more personal touch will draw crowds of their own.
“Small Business Saturday, for us, is very important,” said Chris Carlozzi, the state director for the National Federation of Independent Business. “It’s becoming bigger and bigger each year.”