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TMCNet: Shoppers line up for Black Friday

[November 28, 2009]

Shoppers line up for Black Friday

ANDERSON, Nov 28, 2009 (The Herald Bulletin - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Seems there was something for everyone on Black Friday. Even for those who would rather be someplace else in the freezing predawn hours.

"I used to condemn this stuff," confessed James White of Anderson as he walked from his car in the Target parking lot at about 4:30 a.m., a half-hour before the store opened.

But the prospect of getting a terabyte computer drive for $59 was too good to miss, even if the wind chill was in the teens and 300 people were in line .

"They're usually about $150 or $200," White said of the coveted hardware. The device gives computers enough memory to store about 60,000 albums of music and still run programs, he said.

Electronics and toys were among the biggest draws for many shoppers who were drawn to stores that were open on Thanksgiving Day and to those that opened early Friday with heavily advertised deep discounts.

Tom Hahn of Muncie and cousins Ben and Jacob Adams stood in the bracing cold at the front of the line at Target, where they had been since 10:30 Thursday night. Hahn had his eye on marked-down computer goodies and GPS systems.

"We said 'Let's stay up for the night for the fun of it," Hahn said. It was the first time they had come out early for Black Friday.

They were alone for the first hour or so, but, in true Hoosier fashion, found a way to pass the time with a little basketball.

"We played some shopping-cart Horse," Hahn said.

"He hit one of those from 60 yards out," one of his cousins enthused.

When the doors opened, shoppers strode, not quite running, for the deals they had staked out. For 15 minutes, customers streamed nonstop through Target's front door.

"It's important to know exactly where to go so you can get in and get out," said Laura Ashlock of Anderson, who was on her way out the door in minutes with her mother, Arletta Ashlock. They had planned well, said the daughter, who had studied a map of the store to expedite the expedition.

An hour earlier, at 4 a.m., the doors had swung open up Scatterfield Road at Kohl's, where hundreds lined up beginning with Andersonians Beverly Carey, Ashley Carey and Sunshine Luzader, and Misty DeMarco of Greenwood. They had been in line since about 2:50 a.m., after being at Toys 'R' Us in Muncie at midnight. Elder-Beerman "Icicles are coming off my nose," Luzader said.

The women have been hitting the stores early on the day after Thanksgiving "as long as we can remember," Beverly said. After the holiday meal, they tear into the sales sheets and make a game plan so that each person has a list.

"It's divide and conquer," Luzader said.

High on the list was a Barbie Jet toy that was discounted to less than $30 from its normal price of about $80.

Away from the chain retailers, some local stores also were doing a bustling business, even if they didn't open at 4 a.m.

"The day after Thanksgiving has always been a very busy time for us," said Kathy Flemming, co-owner with Nancy McCafferty of Seasons of the Heart Gift Shoppe on 67th Street in Anderson. "It's one of our three busiest days of the year." By early afternoon on Friday, Flemming said she had seen plenty of shoppers who looked worn out. She said she was glad to be able to provide comfort away from the crowd.

"They expect personal service, gift wrapping, they expect us to know the names of their children," she said of her loyal clientele. "I think that personal aspect is what they come to expect for a local business." With shoppers by the thousands braving the cold and filling store parking lots in the wee hours, could it be a sign that the economy is improving? Maybe. Or, maybe not.

"It's not because the economy is good," Cindy Currey of Alexandria said as she waited for Kohl's to open. "It's bad. That's why we're out here." Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com To see more of The Herald Bulletin, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.theheraldbulletin.com/. Copyright (c) 2009, The Herald Bulletin, Anderson, Ind. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

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