Retail Sales From Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday expected to top $12B

“There’s been plenty of anecdotal evidence around…to suggest that Black Friday, in terms of store-based retail, has been something of a damp squib in the United Kingdom this year”, said Bryan Roberts of researcher Kantar Retail.

That is because more and more retail stores were open on Thanksgiving. Many people imagine mobbed stores and physical fights over items on Black Friday or extreme deal-seekers camped out for days in front of stores.

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With many shoppers having received their last pay packet before Christmas, retailers are hoping the promotions will kick-start festive trading after a weak November.

Instead of lining up at traditional department stores, they’re going online and looking for specialty items.

Online shoppers in the United Kingdom are expected to spend £1bn in a day for the first time as they hunt for bargains on Black Friday. Smartphones generated more than 25% of online sales, with $283 million in sales. This year, NeimanMarcus.com went down hard on Friday and the troubles resurfaced at times on Saturday, too, proving big retailers are still susceptible to being overwhelmed by Web traffic surges.

Shaquille Simon, a 21 year-old McDonald’s manager, said he bought two televisions online from Tesco at midnight, before heading for Westfield early Friday.

Discounts averaging 26 percent off were driving higher sales this year, Adobe said, and average online purchases rose 5 percent from last year to $162. Smartphone shoppers spent an average of $121.06 per order, up 4.3 percent from a year ago.

But the weekend after Thanksgiving is still one of the busiest for US retailers, who use the period to highlight their offerings. “They posted signs saying you can’t have a fire”.

“This is the big event”, said Cindy Hudson, Target’s senior vice president of store operations.

Gerri Spencer and her daughter Jasmine Hansen were enthusiastic participants in Black Friday shopping this year. Some stores have taken a stance not to open on Thanksgiving. There were also four regional command centers monitoring specific activity in their markets. Inside the stores, live feeds at checkout lines monitored for interruptions.

Still, Deloitte’s Simpson saw less of a sense of urgency among consumers seeking deals. Others, like May Bermudez, are still willing to bear the long lines Friday.

“It’s early”, he said, “but it doesn’t look great”.