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At the same time, their pajama-clad counterparts, a much smaller
group that accounted for only a fraction of overall sales, shopped
online from the warmth of their homes and dramatically boosted their
spending. More than a year after the economy's collapse began
rattling shoppers, industry observers said Friday's shopping sprees
offered a strong start to the holiday season.
"We have struggled for a long time, and one of the ways for the
economy to get going again is for the consumer to begin to spend
more freely," said Bill Martin, co-founder of research firm
ShopperTrak, which released its sales figures Saturday. "And I think
this is an indication they were willing to do that."
Preliminary sales data from Martin's organization, a Chicago
research firm that tracks sales at more than 50,000 stores, showed
shoppers spent $10.66 billion when they hit the malls on the day
after Thanksgiving. That's only 0.5 percent more than last year,
when Black Friday sales rose a striking 3 percent.
The traditional shopping spree -- dubbed Black Friday because it
often was the day when a surge of shoppers helped stores break into
"the black," or profitability, for the full year -- has marked the
kickoff of holiday shopping for many consumers.
But its importance has faded in recent years as merchants started
hawking the deep discounts usually reserved for that day well in
advance.
For example, last year's Black Friday spending grew from $10.3
billion to about $10.6 billion. But the overall holiday spending
fell 4.4 percent as shoppers slowed spending as the holiday season
went on.
Still, the day is often used as an important barometer of
shoppers' mindset: what kinds of items they're buying and what kind
of discounts will lure them.
Stores offered deals on more practical items to woo
recession-weary shoppers who more than ever might want gifts that
the recipients will really appreciate.
"I know what they want, but I've been looking for a deal to make
sure I get a good price," said Jude Leeper, 49, of Hanover, Pa., as
she shopped for gifts for family members Friday at a Maryland mall.
"I'm going to buy that gift that I know is going to get used, not
stuffed in a closet."
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On Friday, many of the in-store deals were also available online,
causing some Web sites to overload as shoppers tried to get deals
without waiting in long, cold lines.
Steve Segal, a 47-year-old attorney from Bridgewater, N.J.,
avoided the midnight crowds on Black Friday as he searched for a
hair straightener for his daughter. But his shopping was derailed
when the item was out of stock in stores and Kohl's Web site was
overwhelmed by a crush of shoppers.
He wound up buying it elsewhere online -- for a cheaper price and
with free shopping.
"It was a vicious cyber-circle," he said.
Web marketing analyst Coremetrics said its data showed the
average amount online shoppers spent on Black Friday rose 35 percent
as shoppers spent roughly $170.19 per order -- up from $126.04 last
year.
The company, based in San Mateo, Calif., also said Web shoppers
also bought more items with each purchase. While Web sales are
increasing, they're still only about 7 percent of overall sales,
according to Forrester Research.
Shop-by-television sales were also strong at the TV shopping
network QVC, which said its Black Friday sales totaled $32 million
-- up almost 60 percent from last year, thanks to its first push to
promote its post-Thanksgiving deals.
[Associated Press;
By ASHLEY M. HEHER]
Associated Press writer Ben Greene contributed to this report from
Towson, Md., and AP Business Writer Deborah Yao contributed to this
report from Philadelphia.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed. |
