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Black Friday shoppers usher in season
From left Brandon Pike, 13, his dad, Donald Pike, and his brother, Brasdan Pike, 4, all of Mason Co., rest for a moment while holiday shopping Friday, Nov. 27, 2009, at the Huntington Mall in Barboursville.
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BARBOURSVILLE -- Weary-eyed shoppers, some pulling all-nighters, ushered in the Christmas shopping season early Friday morning as retailers hoped significant markdowns would boost profits in the down economy.
Shoppers from across the region filled the Huntington Mall complex and its surrounding stores in Barboursville. Mall hallways were filled and some stores were packed, while some shoppers waited at store fronts yet to open. Shoppers were greeted with the season's first snowflakes near dawn.
Area emergency dispatchers and law enforcement reported very few traffic problems and shoplifting complaints Friday morning.
Some of the largest crowds were reported at Toys 'R Us. Volunteer firefighters and village police were called to the Barboursville location, where fire code standards forced officials to limit the number of those entering the store. Others waited outside in 30-degree temperatures.
The toy store opened at midnight to a massive crowd. Ona teenager Tabitha Bias and Cross Lanes, W.Va., native Lindsay Maddox witnessed the toy-store madness. Maddox described the crowd as "horrendous." Bias saw women running toward the store, where its capacity crowd forced vehicles to fill an overflow parking lot across the street.
Cabell County 911 received some reports of arguments as anxious shoppers waited outside. The line of shoppers also blocked the path of vehicles. Those just looking at items with no intention to buy were asked to leave the store, said Barboursville Volunteer Fire Chief Paul Hockenberry.
A steady stream of headlights and taillights at 5:40 a.m. indicated Wal-Mart's Barboursville location also was popular with bargain hunters. Witnesses said the store used gates to limit entry points. Tickets also were issued for hot items, such as the Nintendo DS. The crowd control measure led to store officials selling out of the popular video-gaming system before the sale started at 5 a.m. The same wasn't true at the Wal-Mart on U.S. 60, where "doorbusters" were still available by 7 a.m.
Anxious shoppers camped outside of Best Buy. Large crowds also were reported at Target, where long cash register lines continued at 8 a.m. Traffic congestion at Target was still a concern at 10:15 a.m., said Barboursville Police Chief Mike Coffey.
Kasey McClure, 38, of Huntington arrived at the Huntington Mall at about 2:30 a.m. with his wife, daughter and daughter's friend. The shopping party already had visited five stores by 4:25 a.m., including Old Navy, Aeropostale, American Eagle, Elder-Beerman and Target. McClure's job was to protect the bags.
"I just come and hold the stuff in place. They go and run around," he said. "I enjoy it. I just pretty much come for the people watching moments. Just to see people lose their minds over the smallest little thing that's on sale. ... It's kind of funny to watch."
Danielle Johnson, 29, of Wheelersburg, Ohio, was among the Black Friday veterans. She has enjoyed the craziness for seven to eight years. She used to arrive at 4 a.m., but any idea of sleep has been erased. This year's arrival time was midnight. By 4:44 a.m., she was sitting in the floor waiting to grab a gift bag when Victoria's Secret opened 16 minutes later. She already had made purchases at The Disney Store, Bath and Body Works and Claire's.
Alex Weed, Bias and Ryan Smith were among other shoppers sitting on the floor waiting for freebies. They hoped to grab a $100 gift card enclosed in gift bags distributed by the Huntington Mall.
Weed, 23, of South Point, Ohio, was the first person in a line stretching one and a half circles around Santa's place in Center Court. She arrived on the mall parking lot at 10:30 p.m. Thursday. Mall officials allowed her inside at midnight, and she hurried to secure the first spot in line. It was her first Black Friday experience.
"We want these stinking bags," she said.
The bags finally arrived about 5 a.m. Bias and Smith joined three other teenage friends several spots behind Weed. They arrived at midnight and secured their spot in the gift-bag line at 2 a.m. The teenagers played the game Apples to Apples to pass time from 2 a.m. to 3:30 a.m.
A lack of things to do and a desire to spend time with each other led Bias and Smith's group to the mall. Nick Johnson, one of the couple's friends, admitted the $100 gift certificate probably wasn't worth the wait. Smith was asked how many purchases he would make on Black Friday.
"Probably zero. I'm too tired," he said while lying on the hallway floor.
Cheryl Evans, 52, was among those traveling to Barboursville from afar. Her party arrived at 4 a.m. form their McDowell, Ky., home, nearly two hours away in Floyd County. She hoped to purchase 25 percent of her Christmas gifts by the end of Friday.
"It's overwhelming," she said of the early morning experience.
Many of the early-morning shoppers still had a list of stores to visit when interviewed. McClure and Weed were among those hoping to purchase half to three-quarters of their families' Christmas lists by the end of Black Friday.
Danielle Johnson hoped to have everyone marked off her list by day's end. She and Weed said their expediency wasn't about the bargains as much as their dislike of shopping.
"I got it all done last year, so I'll get it all done (by Friday night)," she said. "I want it to be done and over it."
Those were the shoppers retailers hoped to attract.
Tom Smith is an assistant manager at Kids Country Toys. It was the store's second Black Friday in the Huntington Mall. Smith was among retailers reporting increased sales from Black Friday 2008. Many stores declined comment, but unnamed officials at American Eagle, rue21, F.Y.E. and Gymboree all reported increased sales.
"Sales are good," Smith said. "It's been a good, steady morning. It's not been overwhelming."
Early indications of a better Black Friday were contrary to year-to-date sales at Kids Country Toys. Smith attributed the year's decline thus far to mild weather that kept shoppers away in October and November. He anticipates holiday sales will push them ahead of last year.
Surveys completed for The National Retail Federation forecasted an increase in Black Friday shopping nationally. The research indicated up to 134 million people would shop Friday through Sunday, up from 128 million people who planned to do so last year.
The National Retail Federation's research indicated discount and department stores would be the largest attractions, pulling in 62 to 66 percent of respondents. One in ten indicated they would shop at electronic stores, and 36.3 percent planned to shop for clothing and accessories. The federation research expected 10 percent of shoppers to visit stores between midnight and 3 a.m., with 28.8 percent arriving for early-bird deals between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. and 28.2 percent with shopping plans for 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.
Clearing items off a shopping list was not the priority for Maddox and older sister, Bobbie Wall. Maddox is a Marshall University graduate who moved to Charlotte, N.C., for employment. The sisters' Black Friday experience started about midnight at Toys 'R Us in South Charleston, W.Va. They found a massive crowed snaked through the store, so they sought refuge at the toy retailer's Barboursville location only to find the same story.
By 4:30 a.m., Maddox and Wall were waiting for Starbucks to open its doors at Center Court. Maddox described latte as her morning ritual. They expected to buy few gifts Friday.
"It's just to spend time together," Maddox said. "It's not so much about the deals; it's just getting out and having something to do together."
Josh Caldwell, 21, of Ona also counted himself among the sleepless. He was found waiting outside of Radio Shack at 4:19 a.m. His mission included bargain gifts for himself and family. He didn't realize it was getting late until midnight and then opted for the all-nighter. He arrived at 3:50 a.m.
"I don't really enjoy it that much, but to me saving $60 to not really even have to wait in line is worth it," he said.
Donald Pike, 35, of Ashton, W.Va., proved Black Friday isn't an instant hit with everyone. He and his two sons, ages 4 and 13, joined his wife and daughter. They arrived at 3:50 a.m. and had visited Elder-Beerman, Old Navy and American Eagle by 5:13 a.m. The mother-daughter duo was in their fourth store, while the boys rested against a store front in the mall hallway.
"It's boring," Pike said. "This isn't my place."
