As most people have predicted, big sales off and promotions could not get Americans in their black friday spirit. Since there was a death in Valley Stream, NY as a result of the craziness in black friday shopping, national stores like Wal-mart have tighten their security to control the crowds. However, it was not as chaotic as it has always been in black friday. Although many sale items were gone early, it is reported that sales were slow this year.
Not every store was full, for example, Sam's Club in Fullerton, CA was mostly empty. For Home Depot in CA, it seems like people enjoy the beach more than early Christmas shopping. At the Target store in Irvine, CA, customers said the shopping was ok since there were lots of parking spaces. Some customers even stated the fact that many shops did not given out as much incentives as previous years has contributed to the low turnover this black friday.
Optimistic stores however reported that black friday this marked as a sign of recovery. They said that customers were mostly using cash and debit cards instead of credit cards. Shoppers spent their money on practical things like pillows and pajamas since they were trying to cutback. Store owners expect a higher shopping turnover for Christmas as the economy is slowly stabilize.
Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/28/business/28shop.html?ref=business
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/orange-221034-across-shopping.html
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091127/ap_on_bi_ge/us_black_friday_holiday_shopping
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