Brushing snowflakes from her hair, Teagan Hickson walked into a Walmart Supercenter in Fort Wayne, Indiana, hoping to find a few holiday deals on Black Friday. The first thing the mother of two saw: a pallet piled high with Gourmia digital air fryer ovens for $50 each.
Her sister Jordan has been looking for it, she said, but money is tight now for everyone in her family. She's worried about costs next year after reading a Facebook post about price hikes if President-elect Donald Trump's tariffs go into effect in January.
“I try not to spend too much,” said Hickson, 43. “I don't want to add to my credit cards, but I don't want to pay for a lot of things next year.”
As retailers reopened stores in the United States after the American Thanksgiving holiday, some locations are attracting more shoppers. People were eager to see Black Friday store discounts, often comparing them to competitor prices for similar merchandise online.
A concern on the minds of many Americans: If prices rise in 2025 as a result of Trump's move to apply new tariffs on some US goods, consumers like Hickson could feel the impact at grocery stores and restaurants, potentially increasing their cost of living.
At Walmart, Hickson called her husband, Josh, who was sitting in front of his computer at home and ready to compare in-store prices to what they could find online.
“Baby, this looks so good,” she told Josh. “What's online?” A few seconds later, Josh found the same model on Amazon for double the price. He took the box, put it in his cart, and headed to the big box store.
Walmart, which operates 4,700 US stores, this year is offering a variety of deals on Samsung TVs, Dyson vacuum cleaners, Lego and Hot Wheels toys, Levi's jeans, and air fryers. although its pre-Black Friday discounts started on November 11.
Cristal Lopez pushed a cart full of clothes and several sling tote bags to a North Bergen, New Jersey, Walmart Supercenter, looking for holiday clothes for her two children. ,” she said, adding that she still had shopping to complete her holiday list. Aim to spend $1,000 to $2,000 in total – the same as last year – mostly on clothes.
Consumers were expected to buy more merchandise online on Friday, again with purchases of $10.8bn, up nearly 10 per cent from last year, according to Adobe Analytics.
People looking to upgrade their TVs can find the best deals on Friday, with discounts up to 24 percent off list price, according to Adobe's analysis of online retailer prices.
'Spontaneous shopping'
Still, the American trade group, the National Retail Federation, expects an estimated 85.6 million shoppers to visit stores this year, up from 76 million last year. Consumers have only 26 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, compared to 31 free days last year.
Adding to the pressure on retailers is the reluctance of inflation-weary consumers to splurge unless they get good deals.
“With fewer days to shop, consumers are more likely to make spontaneous purchases, which contributes to increased sales during the holiday season,” said Marshall Cohen, senior retail consultant at Circana, a research firm.
Evelyn Contre, 49, waited in a 20-person line at a Lululemon store with her two daughters. Contre was already browsing the websites of Abercrombie & Fitch and Lululemon on Thursday for Black Friday deals before heading to Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Friday.
Crowds were thin early at the Macy's store in Santa Barbara, California, despite Black Friday discounts of up to 50 percent on home goods and clothing and an early opening of 7am, three hours earlier than usual.
John Dillard, 66, was buying a pair of Levi's 504 jeans that his daughter suggested to him. Macy's was offering them 40 percent off their regular price of $60. Dillard, who is retired from the area, said she was planning to attend a holiday party and needed new clothes for the event.
Dillard, who said she has already bought men's dress pants at Macy's for $35 from $95 and black men's dress shoes for just $25, said she usually avoids shopping at the store to avoid the crowds. Deals were important to her because she planned to buy only what she needed for the party. “How many times will I wear these clothes?” he said.
Target slashed prices by $100 on products like the 75-inch Westinghouse TV and the Nintendo Switch game console, and took more than 50 percent off Barbie dolls, Keurig coffee machines and KitchenAid mixers, the deals began on Thanksgiving and continues on Saturday.
The retailer is selling Taylor Swift's new Eras Tour album, as well as special Wicked-related products for Target Circle members.
“Black Friday isn't what it used to be,” said Hoss Moss, a 58-year-old chef from New Jersey, who stopped outside a Target store for the first time in 15 years to buy a Swift book for his young daughter.
“Food prices are expensive and … even clothes are not at the price you would get before.” She said her family of four plans to spend $2,000 to $3,000 on gifts this year, mostly at Macy's and Lululemon.
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