Black Friday: browse in stores, buy online
NEW YORK Stores across the United States offered deep discounts, entertainment and free gifts yesterday to draw bargain hunters on Black Friday, the traditional start of the holiday shopping season, but some shoppers said they were just eyeing goods, reserving their cash for online purchases.
A sharp rise in online sales made the overall picture more positive for traditional retailers expanding beyond bricks-andmortar stores, sending their shares higher. Stores had also carefully managed inventory, hoping to ward off any postholiday liquidation sales that would weigh on profits.
There was little of the over-thetop frenzy that had been a hallmark of Black Friday in years past, and some stores appeared to be getting creative with gimmicks beyond heavy discounts.
But signs pointing to muted instore sales – fewer cars in mall parking lots, shoppers leaving with no purchases – did not portend a weak holiday season, as US consumers were expected to spend more overall, analysts and industry executives said.
Black Friday sales were off to a strong start online, at US$640 million (NZ$930m) in the first hour, up 18.4 per cent from a year ago, according to Adobe Analytics, which measures 80 per cent of online transactions at the largest 100 US web retailers. On Thanksgiving Day, US shoppers spent more than US$2.87 billion online.
Some stores and websites struggled to keep up, and some sites experienced brief outages.
Adobe forecast online Black Friday sales of US$5b (NZ$7.27b), which would be a record high. Online retailers were expected to rake in an additional US$6.6b on Cyber Monday.
Some shoppers were lured by the promise of spectacle, while others felt the pull of nostalgia.
‘‘It’s like a hangout, it’s an experience,’’ said Jonathan Lin, 17. ‘‘All my friends are back from college, and we got together.’’
‘‘There’s something nostalgic about being at the stores this early,’’ Jennifer Stasiak said at Chicago’s Oakbrook Centre.
Miguel Flores, 43, an overnight REUTERS security guard, visited a Target in Manhattan after his shift ended. ‘‘I mostly shop online, but decided to drop in because I haven’t been to a store in a long time,’’ he said.
The period between the US Thanksgiving holiday and Christmas can make or a break a retailer, accounting for as much as 40 per cent of annual revenue.
More people picked up deals online, and the traditional Black Friday rush was split by stores opening the night before.
Godiva gave out free chocolates, while Sephora offered face masks and perfumes. Dancers entertained Bergdorf Goodman shoppers, according to the New York Post.
There were some signs of the chaos for which Black Friday is traditionally known. A false report of gunfire caused shoppers to evacuate the Westland Mall in Hialeah, Florida. The Riverchase Galleria outside Birmingham, Alabama said police broke up a fight between two women who might have been trying to get the same sale item in a store.
A continued switch to online shopping, led by Amazon, has forced chains such as Toys R Us to file for bankruptcy this year.
Despite the explosive online growth, traditional retailers still earn the bulk of their revenue from in-store buys. Shoppers in brick-and-mortar stores can also be easier to tempt with impulse or add-on purchases than online browsers.
A Macy’s employee at the Garden State Plaza mall in Paramus, New Jersey said it was less busy yesterday because the store had been open, and packed, the previous day.
‘‘They’re all online,’’ said Sarah Jones, 42, an employee at Roosevelt Field Mall on Long Island. ‘‘I’ve worked in retail my whole life, trust me.’’ Reuters