Black Friday bargain hunting underway
MIAMI - Ready, set, bargain hunt.
Black Friday will be in full swing today, according to the National Retail Federation, with more than 115 million people planning to shop for deals, more than two-thirds will shop at brick-and-mortar stores, up from 64% in 2021.
"People like to go to the stores, people like to see their clothes, try on sweaters, ask their friend if it looks good on them, maybe get something to eat at the mall," said Hitha Herzog with H Squared Research.
Pete Marrero, the General Manager of Dolphin Mall, agrees.
"So, there's a lot to be said about going to brick and mortar stores to feel and try something on instead of buying it online, and then you have to send it back because it didn't fit properly," he said.
"There are certain things that you were going to buy and you want to touch it and feel it. When it comes to something like Black Friday, you do have stores that are going anywhere from 30% to 70% off the entire store for the Black Friday weekend," he added.
Marrero said he expects sales will be up this year.
"We expect traffic and sales to be up this year. Somewhere in the single digits, anywhere from a 4% to 8% increase," he said.
For those who plan to do a little shopping, Marrero offered some safety tips.
"Be aware of your surroundings. If you're a woman and carrying a purse, put it over your neck and hold the purse. If you're a man, take your wallet and put it in your front pocket, not the back pocket. Every single year we get together with the Sweetwater police department and we create a game plan specifically for this weekend. We'll see more police officers this weekend than we'll see the rest of the year. We augment our security staff," he said.
Many stores like Target, Macy's, and Walmart were closed on Thanksgiving so on Friday they'll offer deep discounts. Now that pandemic related supply chain issues have been resolved, retailers have more merchandise than space in their warehouses
"They're going to lower prices on everything to make room and space for the things that they to bring in for spring," said Kristen Gail, President of Rakuten Rewards
Black Friday remains the busiest shopping day of the year. Right behind is Cyber Monday, with an estimated 65 million shoppers online.
Sales are expected to climb to $482 billion, a 6% increase over last year, according to the National Retail Federation.
Gift cards are a favorite gift this holiday season. Americans will spend $28.6 billion on gift cards this year, with an average value of $51.47 per card.
The most popular gift cards are for restaurants (27%), department stores (26%), bank-issued cards (25%), and food delivery services (10%)