At 5 a.m. the day after Thanksgiving, the temperature was about 33 degrees in Eugene – but the cold did not stop shoppers from getting their frigid hands on great deals.
Black Friday 2007?More than 147 million people went shopping on Black Friday this year, a 4.8 percent jump from last year. ?The average consumer spent $347.44, down 3.5 percent from last year. ?14.3 percent of consumers were already shopping at 4 a.m. ?The average male spent $393.63, while the average woman spent $303.95 ?55.1 percent of shoppers went to discount giants like Wal-Mart ?As of Nov. 26, the average shopper had completed 36.4 percent of holiday shopping ?The Nation Retail Federation projects that holiday sales will rise 4 percent this year, totaling $474.5 billion. ?Most popular items sold were digital photo frames, laptops, clothing and accessories, books, CDs, DVDs, videos and video games, toys and gift cards. -National Retail Federation |
For nearly eight hours, people stood outside the automatic doors of Springfield’s Circuit City, waiting for their chance to purchase anything – and everything – on sale for Black Friday, dubbed the biggest shopping day of the year. The store hit its 900-person capacity from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m., with a thick line of consumers trailing out the door and around the side of the building. A few of the store’s 80 employees acted as bouncers, letting people inside after satisfied shoppers strolled out.
Televisions ranked most popular at the electronics giant: from LCD to plasma, these televisions sold out like hotcakes as prices lowered $100 to $500, said the store’s manager, Victor Sjakovs.
“Almost every one of the main specials we had were gone,” he said.
iPods, Zune MP3 players and GPS units also topped shoppers’ purchases, as well as digital picture frames.
Tracy Mullin, president of the National Retail Federation, said in a statement that retailers discounted high-definition TVs and diamond necklaces, but also “chose to highlight lower-priced merchandise like digital photo frames, hand mixers and sterling silver jewelry on Black Friday this year. While many of these items will remain popular during the holiday season, there is strong interest in them today simply because the prices are irresistible.”
The NRF is the world’s largest retail association, representing more than 1.6 million retail establishments.
This year, the trade group is projecting that retail sales will be 4 percent higher than in 2006. This prediction jumps consumer spending on gifts to nearly $474.5 billion. On average, shoppers spend $451 on family gifts, $86 on friends and $91 on food and candy, among other holiday expenses which total $890.
The second-most profitable stores were building equipment and supply stores, followed by department stores. This year, Northwest department stores cashed in particularly well, especially in the shoe department. UGG Australia boots and slippers, which stormed the country several years ago, were certainly the most popular, said Seattle’s Nordstrom assistant manager Hector Padilla.
