As people across the Washington region gather around dining room tables for a day of turkey and giving thanks, retailers are busy bracing for the day-after-Thanksgiving crush of bargain shoppers. Thousands are expected to descend upon local malls and discount stores on Black Friday — the day that’s considered the official kickoff to the holiday shopping season.
“We’re all going to be here with our tennis shoes on and waiting for the doors to open,” said Lynn Blacker, marketing manager for Tysons Corner Center in McLean.
The mall opens its doors at 8 a.m., an hour earlier than usual. Tysons doesn’t release visitor numbers for specific days, but Blacker said she expects crowds and said, more importantly, the frenzy of Black Friday gets shoppers excited for the weeks ahead.
“[Black Friday] is very important in that it’s the official kickoff of the holiday season,” she said. “In terms of the impact on the mind-set of the shopper, the holiday season has begun.”
Mall shopping is a big part of the holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation. A recent survey by the Washington-based trade group found that more than 60 percent of shoppers plan to buy holiday gifts at department stores.
The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City made the decision to open its doors at 5 a.m. — an hour earlier than last year — in anticipation of the demand for its stores and offers a slew of special bargains from 5 to 9 a.m.
“Shoppers seem to be increasingly eager to be in there shopping earlier,” said Jill Schlapkohl, director of marketing for the Fashion Centre. “People are looking for easy, fast ways to shop. By opening at 5 a.m., we’re giving shoppers more options.”
But while area malls are expecting crowds on Black Friday, they’re anticipating even more crowds on the Saturday before Christmas, said Blacker.
A recent survey by the Macerich Company, which manages Tysons, found that only 33 percent of shoppers plan to hit the stores on Friday. Many choose to wait for more bargains as it gets closer to Christmas.
“Our business will be pretty steady through Christmas,” Blacker said. “But people are waiting longer and longer to shop because retailers cut prices closer to the day.”
