MIDNIGHT MADNESS: Thousands mob Macy’s Herald Square at the stroke of midnight today, while a few hours earlier, a happy shopper heads home with a bargain from Times Square’s Toys R Us. (Christopher Sadowski)
The crowd at Macy’s Herald Square. (Christopher Sadowski)
After many stores chose to kick off their holiday deals on Thanksgiving, at some New York shops, the number of people seeking Black Friday discounts seemed fewer than in years past.
This morning, customers at Bloomingdale’s on 59th Street and Lexington Ave. were surprised by what looked like a smaller turnout.
“We were at Urban Outfitters before here and we were shocked [at how few people there were,]” said shopper Jodi Goodfriend, a consultant from New Jersey who was accompanied by her two teenage daughters. “At New Jersey last year, it was crazy. [My daughters] actually got to try stuff on this year.”
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Indeed, the line at Bloomingdales was only four people deep at 6:20 a.m. but roughly 200 customers were in line by the time the store opened at 7 a.m.
Another man in line was surprised the shopping scene wasn’t like what he’d seen. “This is our first Black Friday. You see stuff on TV being crazy, so we were confused why there wasn’t many people,” said 23-year-old student Maha Al-Ghafry.
One woman decided to take advantage of some Black Friday discounts because of the seemingly calm scene.
“I have never done Black Friday,” Manhattan mom Lisa Ehrlich said. “I said I wouldn’t ever because of the crowds, but it’s not too bad. It’s relatively empty.”
Bloomingdale’s senior vp and general manager Richard Mast said he was “cautiously optimistic” about shopping this year, but noted the store’s “ready for lots of business.”
Elizabeth Garcia, a sales rep from the Bronx borough of New York City, decided to start shopping at about 3:30 a.m. at Toys R Us in New York’s Times Square. As a result Garcia, who has three children ages three, five and seven, believes she missed some of the lines on Thanksgiving when the store opened at 8 p.m. That’s good news since the crowds got to her last year, and she Garcia almost got into a fight over a Tinker Bell couch.
“This year I wasn’t about to kill people,” she said.
Even at JCPenney at the Queens Center Mall — which opened at 5:45 a.m., fifteen minutes before it was scheduled to do so — the crowd was relatively small, but shoppers were determined to seek out deals.
Of the more than 100 people shopping, many were gunning for $8 Cook appliances, which sold out in 20 minutes.
“It was chaos,” said warehouse worker Edgar Perez, 25, who was shopping for gifts with his wife.
“We got here at 3 [a.m]. I didn’t camp out because I knew the lines were going to be crazy.”
Another couple spent $800 at the store and said they are going back for more “I’m on a mission to find the best price. I’m a New Yorker — I don’t like to be ripped off,” said Pedro Llanos, 50, who was shopping with his wife, Katheline, 40.
Their big get was a $1,000 Sealy Posturpedic matress that they snagged for $300.
“Our 13-year-old [daughter] wanted clothes,” Llanos said. They were also planning to buy gifts for their other, 10-year-old daughter and 20-year-old son.
They also bought an $80 George Forman grill for $19 and a $70 iron for $29, two items that Sandy claimed when strong winds broke the kitchen counter in their Lower East Side home.
At a mall in San Antonio, Texas, Black Friday got off to a rowdy start when one shopper pulled a gun on another who punched him in the face while they were waiting in line at a Sears store, local police say.
Sgt. Rob Carey tells the San Antonio Express-News a man rushed into the store when it opened Thursday night to get to the front of a line, started arguing with people and tried cutting in front of them.
One man who got punched pulled a gun and that scattered shoppers, including the impatient line-cutter who took cover behind a refrigerator. Then he fled.
Carey says the man with the gun had a permit to carry the weapon and isn’t being charged with a crime.
Yesterday, while most New Yorkers were scarfing down turkey and pumpkin pie, others got a head start on snapping up bargains from retailers whose doors were open on Thanksgiving Day.
At Toys R Us, the line of customers waiting for the 8 p.m. opening stretched several blocks along Times Square.
Erica Williams, 32, of Brooklyn, said, “I’m looking for an Xbox and an iPod. I’m saving about $200 on the Xbox, and with the iPod bundle, I’ll save about $100.
“I’m getting all my shopping done tonight, just tonight, no Black Friday, no Cyber Monday, none of that. I’m a pro at this.’’
And this year, she won’t have to resort to paying “a homeless person to sit in line for me.’’
Heather Morden, 38, of Arkansas, said, “We had no idea it was going to be a mile-long line. We’ve never done shopping like this before. It’s nuts, but fun.”
Sophia Deer, 29, her husband and her 22-month-old daughter, Angelia, of the Rockaways, have been living at hotels since Hurricane Sandy hit.
“Since we’re staying at Times Square, we figured we’d catch some deals,” Deer said. “I thought we’d get Angelia’s mind off things.”
At Lord & Taylor, which was open most of the day, Upper East Side teacher Susan Klein said, “It was much more pleasant than going [Friday].
“In general, stores are more or less giving the same discounts both days.”
She bought ties, wallets and jewelry as holiday gifts for up to 50 percent off.
TriBeCa legal assistant Selena Couloufacos, 42, shopping at Lord & Taylor with her 10-year-old son, Alexander, echoed the sentiment.
“I don’t want to do Black Friday. I just wanted to do some early shopping for my son,” she said. “It’s 30 percent off Ralph Lauren for him.”, who also scored ornaments at 50 percent off “We had a good day,” she said.
At Aeropostale in Times Square, business was brisk as a steady stream of shoppers came in.
“Things are bustling — people aren’t just looking, they’re buying,” noted store greeter Lisandra Salgado, 20. The retailer planned to keep its doors open 24/7 through Black Friday and into the weekend, 72 hours straight.“Friday, it’s a lot of people. It’s going to be chaos. I don’t like it,” he said. “People push you, fight for clothes. It’s just rude.”
In the men’s department at Banana Republic in Grand Central Terminal, Tony Diaz, a lawyer visiting from Mexico City, was scooping up $59 and $69 shirts at 40 percent off.
“Thursday and Friday are the same price, but on Friday I cannot find my size,” said Diaz.
Many stores had manageable crowds early in the day, but not Kmart on Hylan Boulevard on Staten Island, where folks were lined up well before the 6 a.m. opening for “door-buster” sales.
Friends Lui Lui and Goldie Wong made their way around the store snapping up cardigans, winter coats, ties and pants at a big discount.
“We just hate the [Black Friday] crowd,” said Lui. “ Too many people.”
“I’d rather shop than eat,” laughed Wong. “I’m not a big turkey fan. I’m going to just find somewhere to eat.”
College student Sophia Gadraoui was shopping at H&M in Herald Square all afternoon with a friend because her family lives out of town. She got a coat, five sweaters and tights for $177.
“We moved here and don’t have any family around, so we’re shopping,” she said. “The deals are amazing.”
“We had 32-inch LCD TVs for $97 when we opened and they were gone in an hour,” said Sir Braxton, 22, who works security.
The line stretched from the front of the store to the electronics department in the back, and shoppers poured in steadily throughout the day.
At the height of the frenzy, some shoppers were snatching others’ carts.
“The customer demand was crazy,” said Braxton.
Many shoppers were Sandy victims still trying to recover from the storm, buying up electronics, shoes, bedding and clothing.
“We lost our house, we lost everything,” said Raymond Hutchinson, 67. “All we’ve been doing is trying to get furniture, odds and ends to replace what we’ve lost.”
New Dorp residents Christine Perrone, 48, and her mom, Carol Friedman, 69, were still shopping at 4 p.m. and hadn’t even started cooking Thanksgiving dinner.
“We get everything in here, and the lines will be too long tomorrow,” said Perrone.
Retired housekeeper Elizabeth Duncan, 68, lives by herself, doesn’t cook and came to shop for fun.
“I just enjoy the atmosphere, it makes me feel like the holidays are here,” said the grandmother of eight.
Kmart closed at 4 p.m. but was slated to repen at 8 p.m.
“I’m coming back at 8 tonight because they have so many different buys,” laughed Duncan.
Black Friday itself kicked off with pumped-up crowds charging into stores at the stroke of midnight today. About 2,000 people rushed into Macy’s in Herald Square while cheering.
“It’s exciting and fun. Why not come here?” asked Ellie Cho, 25 from Manhattan. “Maybe I’ll get a good bargain while I’m looking.”
People had camped out in front of the Best Buy in Union Square to save thousands on electronics.
Carlos Rosa, 22, from the Lower East Side, purchased four HD televisions for family members.
“I’m probably saving more than a thousand dollars,” he said.
And Joana Rodriguez, 21, from Bushwick, got in line at around noon yesterday to buy her sister a new television and laptop. “I’ll save five or six hundred dollars here,” she noted.
Additional reporting by Matt Abrahams, Amber Sutherland, Tara Palmeri and C.J. Sullivan
With AP