Black Friday Shoppers Find Deals In Peace
GLENDALE (CBSLA.com) — The 2012 holiday shopping season has commenced, as Black Friday shoppers get in and out of malls like the Glendale Galleria with deals and not too much drama.
Shoppers descended on malls and retail centers throughout Southern California to partake in advertised deals and doorbusters, just hours after wrapping up Thanksgiving dinner. Overall, holiday shopping is expected to be up 4 percent this year, KNX 1070's Jon Baird reports.
Podcast
Fifteen hundred people lined up at Target an hour before it opened its doors. Despite the big ticket TV deals, the hottest items were toys and small electronics.
One shopper, who showed off deeply discounted toys in her shopping bag, said she and her daughter had already been to two shopping centers during the early hours of Black Friday.
"Oh, we started at maybe, like, around midnight?" she told CBS2/KCAL9's Joy Benedict, who also took advantage of the Black Friday sales to purchase a 40-inch LED TV.
RELATED: Best Places For Black Friday Shopping Deals In Los Angeles
Security is high for shopping malls throughout the region, after several incidents of violence among Black Friday shoppers.
Last year, a woman at a Porter Ranch Walmart used pepper spray on other shoppers as clerks unwrapped plastic from a shipment of Xbox gaming consoles. About 20 people suffered minor injuries.
Walmart has prepared each of its 4,000 stores with a crowd-control plan, according to Steven V. Restivo, Walmart's senior director of community affairs.
A Deloitte survey says shoppers are planning to stick to a tight budget this year.
"They're feeling better about their situation but they're very cautious with issues related to gas, real estate, the economy," said Jackie Fernandez with Deloitte Development.
As a result, retailers are adjusting with up to 50 percent off details to bring in customers, but not just at opening. Analysts say the new trend is offering doorbuster deals throughout the day to target a variety of Black Friday shoppers.
RELATED: Best Places For Black Friday Shopping Deals In Orange County
