Follow LA Observed on Twitter here
There's the usual crush of early-morning shoppers (as well as scattered reports of fighting while waiting in line), but it'll be a couple of days before there's any definitive word on how the day turned out. Despite efforts by retailers to bring out merchandise earlier in the month, Black Friday remains a very big deal. Actually, it's been the biggest shopping day for several years running. From the WSJ:
Mayhem aside, Black Friday will send what is expected to be a stronger but fiercely competitive holiday season into high gear. The National Retail Federation is projecting 2.3% sales growth for the period--defined as November and December combined--the strongest increase since 2006, when sales increased by 3.1%. Like Black Friday itself, the holiday is expected to be hard fought and driven by promotions. Hence, Target is trumpeting a 32" Samsung HDTV for $327.99; Macy's is touting e-readers for $129.99. Even luxury retailer Neiman Marcus is offering a Black Friday deal this year, giving consumers who spend at least $100 in stores between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday a $50 gift card that expires on Dec. 5.
As expected, online traffic has been huge, with Thanksgiving Day sales increasing 15 percent over the same period last year (many online retailers are offering free shipping with no minimal purchase). But online sales only account for about 8 percent of overall retail sales. Malls are still where most of the action is. Today the big focus will be on higher-priced electronic items, with sales of soft goods likely to pick up next month (that stuff is often marked down closer to Christmas). Keep an eye on what happens later today and during the weekend, after the doorbuster promotions are finished. In the past couple of years, shopping really slowed down on Saturday and Sunday.
Mark Lacter created the LA Biz Observed blog in 2006. He posted
until the day before his death on Nov. 13, 2013.