Increased law enforcement presence planned for Black Friday

Tens of thousands of shoppers will head to malls and stores for Black Friday with the Los Angeles Police Department committed to "operating with heightened awareness and increased vigilance during the busy holiday shopping season."

"Recognizing the potential for heightened criminal activity and an increased number of shoppers, the LAPD is working hard to ensure the safety and security of residents and visitors," Officer Melissa Ohana said.

"Officers are actively patrolling shopping centers and coordinating with local businesses to deter and respond to potential threats. The goal is to create a safe and secure environment to allow the community to enjoy the holiday festivities. Community members are reminded to remain vigilant, park in well-lit, secure areas, keep valuables out of view, and report any suspicious activity."

"The LAPD remains committed to proactive community engagement and collaborative efforts to enhance public safety during this festive period."

The California Highway Patrol is increasing statewide efforts to combat organized retail crime as the holiday shopping season begins, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.

"The California Highway Patrol -- working with allied agencies -- is increasing enforcement efforts and conducting and supporting covert and confidential takedowns to stop these criminals in their tracks during the holiday season and year-round," Newsom said.

Most J.C. Penney stores will open at 5 a.m., and Macy's, Best Buy, Target, Dick's Sporting Goods and The Home Depot at 6 a.m.

According to an annual survey released Nov. 16 by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, an estimated 182 million people are planning to shop in stores or online from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday, the highest estimate since the federation began tracking the data in 2017 and 15.7 million more than the previous high of 166.3 million set last year.

While the five-day shopping event that begins on Thanksgiving Day and continues through the following Monday typically represents some of the busiest shopping days of the year, consumer behavior has shifted in recent years, with many consumers preferring to spread their shopping over the entire season, according to the National Retail Federation, the world's largest retail trade association.

According to the survey, 74% of holiday shoppers plan to shop during the five-day Thanksgiving weekend, a five percentage point increase from the 69% in 2019, the last Christmas season before the coronavirus pandemic.

The top reasons consumers plan to shop are because the deals are too good to pass up (61%) and tradition (28%).

Black Friday continues to be the most popular day to shop, with 72% (130.7 million) planning to shop then, up from 69% in 2022. Cyber Monday is again second with 39%, 71.1 million.

The survey found that clothing continued to top the list of what people plan to buy during Christmas shopping at 56%, followed by gift cards (44%), toys (37%), books, video games and other media (31%) and food/candy (29%).

Legos and Hot Wheels were the top two toys shoppers told pollsters they planned to buy for boys for the second consecutive year. Cars were third, followed by the PlayStation video game system and video games. Trucks were sixth and Nerf products were seventh.

Spider-Man-related items tied for eighth with remote-control cars. Pokémon items were 10th, down four spots from 2022, returning to where they were in 2021.

The top two on the list for girls was the same as 2021 and 2022 -- Barbie dolls and any doll. Legos were third, up one spot from 2022. Makeup was fourth, also up one spot from 2022. Clothes were fifth. LOL Surprise! dolls were sixth, down three spots from both 2021 and 2022.

Baby dolls were seventh, up three spots from 2022. Squishmallows plush toys were eighth, down two spots from 2022. Arts and crafts and the Barbie Dreamhouse tied for ninth.

The survey of 8,424 adult consumers was conducted November 1-6 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points.

Last Chance for Animals will conduct its 37th annual Black Friday Fur- Free Friday protest in Beverly Hills, seeking to pressure brands with stores on Rodeo Drive to adopt a global fur-free policy. The sale of new fur products in California has been banned since Jan. 1.

The brands that will be targeted are Dior, Fendi, Loro Piana, Louis Vuitton, Philipp Plein, Max Mara, and Stefano Ricci, according to Lisa Beal, the campaign director of Last Chance for Animals.

Black Friday is also the 32nd annual "Buy Nothing Day," with Adbusters, which conceived the day, encouraging the public to "keep the credit card holstered," "keep your cash in your jeans" and "give five bucks to a homeless person. Have a heart-to-heart chat with a friend.

Adbusters describes itself as "a global network of activists, writers, artists, designers, hackers, tricksters, poets, philosophers and punks."