Black Friday shoppers out in force
Black Friday brought out the shoppers in the lakes area, with the trickle of traffic just after 3 a.m. becoming a flood three hours later.
Setting out to shop well before dawn paid off for bargain hunters. Reactions ranged from shoppers exhilarated by the competitive masses to those muttering at the madness of it all.
Sisters Theresa Barnett and Laurie Smith, both of Brainerd, started their vigil outside Best Buy at 9 p.m. Wednesday. They were on the hunt for deals on laptops and MP3 players.
"It's just fun to do," Barnett said. "It's a good deal. You get some really good prices."
The National Retail Federation predicted Black Friday bargains would attract 134 million shoppers this year, an increase from 128 million people who planned to shop the day after Thanksgiving last year.
Customers wrapped around the Best Buy store in Baxter at 4:30 a.m. Friday as they waited for the doors to open at 5 a.m. Some of the shoppers had been at the location all night waiting for the Black Friday specials. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
After four years of camping out at Best Buy, Barnett and Smith were the first in line this year. A shivering Kim Stanford, Baxter, who was with the sisters for the first time, was glad the wait was almost over.
"I'm getting my item and going home," she said.
The women said the line outside the store was shorter this year.
"People are so tight this year," Smith said. "It's had an effect."
The sisters could relate. Barnett's husband works in real estate and Smith's husband was out of work for six months. They said they hoped for even better sale prices but were still finding deals.
"You can see the economy is getting better and it's trying to turn, but it's not quite there yet," Barnett said.
Melonie Ellstrom and Rob Stevens of Baxter were there to get a 32-inch replacement TV for Stevens' sister. If the older TV hadn't died, they said they probably wouldn't have been in line. They described the vigil outside the store as friendly and social. Stevens compared it to the Fourth of July, but with a definite competitive edge.
"It's become a culture to me," said Keifer Pesola of Motley, who joined the line at Best Buy at 5 p.m. Thursday. "Anything to save a buck."
There were single lines of people waiting outside Kohl's and Target before 4 a.m. At the 24-hour Walmart, shoppers had the benefit of waiting inside. They could stake out spots next to the doorbuster sale items but couldn't put the merchandise in their carts until 5 a.m. Employees - about 300 workers in the store - monitored the areas. People waited in lines behind balloon markers for the high demand items in short supply and groups gathered around "grab and go" stockpiles. The crowd grew thicker as 5 a.m. drew closer.
Kirk Helmberger, Walmart store manager, said customers were lined up for the $198 laptops by 10 p.m. Thursday, making him wish he had 1,000 of them to sell.
As for customer trends, Helmberger said a lot of people were buying basics. The other two areas crowded with shoppers were electronics and toys. At 5 a.m., shoppers surged forward reaching for the sale items, pushing and occasionally snatching a desired product before it could be passed to the next person. Within minutes the feeding frenzy was over as the most sought after items were gone. Although many sale items, even TVs, were still available past the first rush.
"It's totally extreme madness," said John Thomas as he moved down a crowded aisle with a 32-inch TV in his arms. His Baxter neighbor Ron Robbins came with him. It was Robbins' first time venturing into the morning mob. He said he didn't know what to expect, but they were able to get what they wanted.
Thomas said people were pretty well-behaved for the most part and the early morning went well. Nearby Janie VanDenBerg, of Des Moines, was shopping with her daughter-in-law and watching the rush from a side aisle. The two women had a list and a plan and had just witnessed a crowd at Sears.
"I don't need too many things, but it's fun to look," VanDenBerg said. She hoped to get a laptop at Walmart, but the deal she was looking for was already sold out.
Just 20 minutes after 5 a.m., formerly crowded areas cleared out as the wait moved to the checkout lanes where people chatted cordially.
Before 6 a.m. a large, calm crowd was gathered outside Menards waiting for the doors to open. A group of women asked another shopper to snap a photo of them. One man coming from the parking lot halted after seeing the masses saying "this is half-way nuts."
Others agreed in good-humored fashion. A woman shook her head at the sight. A man said he was going home to call a psychiatrist. Then cheers erupted as employees opened the doors and let the orderly crowd inside.
RENEE RICHARDSON may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.