Stuffed with Thanksgiving Day turkey, shoppers wake up bright and early the Friday after Thanksgiving for some of the best sales of the season. Black Friday is a tradition that has some religiously waking before dawn, and has others trying to sneak in late to see if they can get their share without losing any sleep. This year, the recession had many stores opening up as early as 4 a.m. to welcome shoppers. Some of these shoppers were students who shared with Technician their own Black Friday shopping adventure.
John Kvarta, senior in computer engineering:
Start time: 9:00 a.m.
What stores did you go to (in order)?: Best Buy, Southpark Mall (Express, American Eagle), Gamestop, Walmart
What were some of the best sales?: Saving $15 on select Video Games (Killzone 2 and inFamous)
Were you looking for anything special?: I was mostly looking for an external hard drive on sale at Best Buy but it didn’t look like it was in the store (perhaps sold out already). The sale is still shows up on the website so I may just buy it online through its sale date.
Have you done Black Friday before?: Yep!
End time: 2 p.m.
Rishav Turambar Dey, freshman in aerospace engineering
Start time: 6 a.m.
What stores did you go to (in order)?: Crabtree Valley Mall, Macy’s, Brookstone, Break at McDonald’s, The Eye (Carolina Hurricanes Store), Game Stop. Then went to South Point in Durham for BestBuy, REI, Belk, SEARS, Sunglass Hut, Macy’s. Finish Line, and Belk (again!)
What were some of the best sales?: I thought the clothes at Macy’s especially some tommy Hilfiger shirts and some sweaters! Also got some really neat multi-tools from brookstone which are good to give to people back home in India and were for really cheap!
Were you looking for anything special?: I was looking for a digital camera at Best Buy but I decided against buying one right now and thought of saving some more money and getting a better camera than the one I intended to buy because it didn’t have a good deal anyway.
Have you done Black Friday before?: Nope, it’s my first time in USA, hence my first Black Friday ever.
End time: 1:30 p.m.
Kendre Davis, sophomore in psychology
Start time: 6AM
What stores did you go to (in order)?: We went to Dillards, JC Penneys, Belks, Express, New York and Co., Macys, American Eagle, Charlotte Russe, Marshalls, Target, Micheals, and Kohls.
What were some of the best sales?: The best deal I got was a 20 piece cookware set complete with Knives for 40$ after the rebate! I also got a 85$ coat for $25 and a sweater from express for $20. I did alot of online shopping on Thanksgiving Day. I got a sweater dress and two pairs of boots as well as other gift items.
Were you looking for anything special?: I was mainly looking to buy my Christmas presents from my parents and grandparents. I pick them out, they wrap them, and I act surprised, It works pretty well.
Have you done Black Friday before?: I have done Black Friday for awhile. We just love shopping so any holiday like “Black Friday” designed around it is my idea of fun!
End time: 5 p.m.
