Black Friday shopping sees big sales, little early morning rush
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Long gone are the early-morning lines and crowds rushing to get the best bargains first, but Black Friday still drew its share of in-person shopping at Denver area shopping centers.
Consumers have moved away from the traditional Black Friday extravaganza and shifted priorities on where they are spending their money, according to a recent report from Deloitte.
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The report found that 37% of American households say they are in a worse financial position than last year but shopping is still underway in a strategic manner to combat inflation. Low-income shoppers are expected to spend 25% more than last year, the report said.
At Cherry Creek Shopping Center, most customers began to fill the parking garages at 11 a.m. Friday, with an expected rush between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. according to General Manager Jeramy Burkinshaw.
“We expect the shopping center to preform exceptionally well this holiday season,” Burkinshaw said. “Our current trends will put us on par above 2018, 2019 traffic as far as vehicular counts and guest visits, so. again, we expect it to be a very robust season and we think our retailers will preform very well.”
Cherry Creek recently went remodels, relocations and openings, including the Gucci store opening. Alo, a yoga and lifestyle wear brand, opened Friday with a Black Friday sale of 30% off and a line of customers out the door, said Lauren Larsen, general manager for Alo, and Roby Platt, assistant general manager.
“We were supposed to open Nov. 5 but got pushed back, so customers are really excited,” Larsen said.
Consumers in the mall were drawn to in-person shopping for the sales, as well as to get out of the house. They included Kelly Ryan from Denver. Ryan’s friend, Jenny Orren from Aurora, said she had yet to purchase anything but thought the sales she had seen so far were decent discounts.
“I feel like it’s not as much about Black Friday as it’s just like now is a good time to buy things,” Ryan said. “I feel like it’s still chaotic, like trying to park, trying to do everything. It’s still pretty chaotic to do it. But I think it’s calmed down because everything is online, so you can actually like go and browse and try things on and have a chance to pick out what you really want when you’re there.”
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Mark Weiss from Stanford, Connecticut, visited Cherry Creek with his family because Black Friday shopping is something he has historically enjoyed.
“[I’m] usually back East, so this is only the second time doing it out here,” Weiss said. “Clearly, a lot more people go online, but it is fun to go out Black Friday and just see a lot of people, see the spirit, the energy, the vibe, the decorations, the lights.”