Boston retailers say they are not discouraged by recent economic conditions and are expecting a large turnout this holiday season. The barometer for holiday shopping has long been the day after Thanksgiving, or ‘Black Friday,’ the busiest shopping day of the year.
‘It was a very hard November,’ said Kerri Darrico, general manager of F.A.O. Schwarz’s Boston store. ‘Since Friday [Nov. 22], it has been very strong.’
Darrico noted that the Boston store prepared for Black Friday by scheduling full staff to have on hand and extra shipments of popular toys. Harry Potter Legos, Spiderman merchandise, Bratz dolls and Chicken Dance Elmo will be best sellers this year, Darrico predicted.
Because Hanukkah begins on Black Friday this year and because there is less time between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, Darrico also predicted a higher shopper turnout than in previous years.
‘No matter what, parents are not going to skimp on their children,’ said Bob Friedland, a corporate spokesperson for F.A.O. Schwarz. ‘Children don’t understand what’s going on other than Christmas and toys,’ he added, referring to the suffering economy.
‘Parents are still going to treat Christmas like it’s Christmas. We found that last year, as well,’ he said.
Friedland stressed it was ‘business as usual’ this year. Holiday toys are ordered as early as February and shelves are continually stocked from April through the holiday season. ‘We’re expecting lines out the door,’ he said about Black Friday, but would not comment on actual crowd size or on financial expectations.
Aside from those in the toy industry, other retailers also predicted holiday shoppers would remain unaffected by the economy. Electronics store Best Buy prepared for Black Friday using ‘[the] same strategy as we’ve done year after year,’ according to Donna Beadle, a spokeswoman for Best Buy, Inc.
‘We have as much inventory as we can put in the store, in the store,’ she said. Best Buy has also increased staffing, including security personnel, and focused on advertising.
On the Friday after Thanksgiving, Best Buy opened its stores at 6 a.m. and handed out vouchers for ‘door-buster items,’ a tactic used ‘so that there’s no riots, no fighting, or any sort of issues,’ according to Beadle.
Black Friday turnout was strong at F.A.O. Schwarz, Darrico said, referring to shopper turnout over the holiday weekend. ‘We had a very strong Friday and a very strong Saturday, and today [Sunday] should be very strong, too,’ she said.
Shoppers have been buying rather than just looking, and they have been ‘buying big quantities,’ Beadle said.
‘Everyone realizes there are only three weekends left.’
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