Holiday shopping in the Baltimore region on Friday was all about the bargains.
“I love the rush of bargain shopping,” said Sarah Gibson, of Olney. “This is the best time of year.”
Shoppers arrived early at major retailers throughout the metro area Friday morning, braving the dark and cold to find the best deal.
“I’m looking for big discounts,” said Catherine Johnson, of Towson, who arrived early at the Target Store in Towson.
She said her goal was to get most of her Christmas gift buying completed on Black Friday, the traditional start of the Christmas shopping season named for the day retailers reach profitability for the year.
In downtown Baltimore, a block-long swirl of newspapers, food cartons and milkcrates full of doughnut boxes told latecomers to the Lockwood Place Best Buy that the door-buster deals were probably dealt.
“A lot of people came in for the [computer] notebooks, we sold a lot of desktops, home theater packages, anything on the front page of our ad,” said assistant manager Amber O?Connor.
Tickets were handed out to the 500 to 800 people who were lined up around the block, she said, assuring early birds a stake on the limited inventory items. “People got excited when we started handing out tickets.”
By 10 a.m., the sidewalk was nearly spotless once again.
At the Mall in Columbia, clothes, toys and electronics were hot items.
Maria Dolan, of Columbia, carried several large bags stuffed with toys, saying some were for her family, others for friends, but most for needy neighbors.
“These are for emergencies and those who don?t have gifts,” she said.
