Bloggers,
Below is wire story saying early indications are that Black Friday shoppers let loose of their wallets a touch, compared to dismal last year. On Sunday, I’ll be participating in a media teleconference with the National Retail Federation, and I’ll let you know more then. They’re crunching the numbers now.
Rachel Pritchett, reporter
Early indicators of Black Friday sales promising
CHICAGO (AP) — Shoppers returned to malls Saturday as observers
began reviewing early reports showing just how much consumers spent
during their Black Friday shopping sprees.
The weekend’s first definitive spending data for the day after
Thanksgiving wasn’t expected until later in the day when the
research firm ShopperTrak RTC Corp. reports sales and traffic at
more than 50,000 stores.
Friday’s anecdotal reports showed bigger crowds at stores as
shoppers appeared to buy more than last year, while even buying
some items for themselves such as coats and comforters.
There were fresh signs of strong online sales for the day. Web
marketing analyst Coremetrics said its data showed the average
amount online shoppers spent on Black Friday rose 35 percent as
shoppers spent roughly $170.19 per order — up from $126.04 last
year.
The San Mateo, Calif. company also said Web shoppers also bought
more items with each purchase.
Both Web-only and traditional marketers beefed up their online
discounting for the traditional start of the holiday shopping
season.
Executives at J.C. Penney Co. said their day after Thanksgiving
business in stores was “strong” nationwide as shoppers snatched up
doorbusters.
However, officials at the department store chain, which did not
provide specific information about this year’s business compared
with last year, also cautioned that one weekend’s performance
wasn’t enough to predict how the rest of the holiday season would
fare.
While it’s not a surefire predictor of holiday sales, Black Friday
is still an important barometer of people’s willingness to spend
during the holidays — vital weeks for merchants nationwide.
QVC Inc., which markets products on television and online, said its
Black Friday sales totaled $32 million — up almost 60 percent from
last year, thanks to its first-ever push to promote its
post-Thanksgiving deals.
Many shoppers were still cautious during during Friday’s massive
markdowns.
Jude Leeper, 49, of Hanover, Pa., said the influence of the bad
economy means she’s still counting her pennies this year.
“I know what they want, but I’ve been looking for a deal to make
sure I get a good price,” she said while shopping Friday at Towson
Town Center mall in Towson, Md. “I’m going to buy that gift that I
know is going to get used, not stuffed in a closet.”
