Retailers Share Best Black Friday Steals for Holiday Shoppers
ABC Asks Retailers, What's the Biggest Sale?
Nov. 25, 2010— -- 'Tis the season for big savings. Major retailers across the country enticed early holiday shoppers to line up right after their Thanksgiving dinners today to snatch up marked-down goods before they're gone.
More retailers than ever extended their sales hours into Thanksgiving Day, when stores are traditionally closed, to allow eager shoppers to shop 'til they drop.
The National Retail Federation expects about 138 million people to hunt for bargains this Black Friday, and snap up about $450 billion in merchandise.
To help navigate the catalogue pages overflowing with sales -- 200 in the Macy's book alone, for instance -- ABC News called the nation's biggest retailers to ask, "So, what's your best deal?"
The most frequent answer was only two letters-long: TV.
Customers started lining up early -- three days early -- for Best Buy's television special. Amy Adoniz, the manager of the store in New York City's Union Square, said the chain has "a great deal on a Panasonic 50-inch plasma, and it's an HD that's going to be on sale from $699.99," down from $1,000.
Walmart spokesman Ravi Jariwala said its best deal is on a 32-inch TV.
It's the "single best deal that we are really excited about at Walmart," Jariwala said. The Emerson 32-inch LCD hi-definition TV will cost $198, a price tag that's "only available at Walmart" and is "over a $100 saving off the regular price."
The deal begins 5 a.m. Black Friday, which traditionally kicks off the Christmas shopping season the day after Thanksgiving.
Perhaps one of Black Friday's biggest deals can be found at a store open this year for the first time on Thanksgiving: Sears, where Samsung 55-inch LED televisions are $1,000 off. Sears representative Richard Green said the TVs are usually priced at $2,499.
For those with holiday shopping lists comprised of low-tech gifts, Target said its best deal was a $10 bathrobe, offered half-price for a Black Friday special.
Many shoppers would rather stay in the bathrobes they already own than wait outside for hours for stores to open, and chose to shop online from home instead. Online sales on Turkey Day haven't been as impressive as years past on Cyber Monday, the marketing term for the Monday after Thanksgiving that's known for online deals.
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