In what looked to be a more muted Black Friday than in previous years, consumers descended upon stores worldwide in search of deals on electronics, apparel, and household products as the start of the holiday shopping season—a critical period for major retailers.

Brokerage TD Cowen predicted flat Black Friday traffic, so it cut its projection of U.S. holiday spending to 2% to 3% increase, down from 4% to 5%. October and November discounts took away the urgency and excitement of Black Friday.

“People have already got what they want,” said David Klink, senior analyst at Huntington Private Bank, which owns shares of Walmart and Target. “There are only so many big-screen TVs and Alexa [Amazon voice assistants] you can buy.”

It is anticipated that U.S. Christmas spending would increase at the weakest rate in five years due to the pressure that high borrowing rates and ongoing inflation are placing on many consumers. The majority of big-box stores cut back on seasonal hiring. Retailers probably won’t stop offering discounts over the season in order to prevent stock shortages at the end of the year.

Shoppers’ caution combined with the robust quarterly results of bargain stores like Target and Ross Stores indicate that worries about inflation and rising living expenses are still there even as recessionary fears are waning.

“People are more value conscious,” said Barbara Kahn, a professor at The Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania. “People are spending, but they’re spending more conservatively.”

This year, a record 130.7 million Americans are anticipated to buy in-store and online on Black Friday, according to projections from the National Retail Federation. However, the parking lot of the Walmart in New Milford, Connecticut, was barely halfway full at six in the morning on Friday.

“It’s a lot quieter this year, a lot quieter,” said shopper Theresa Forsberg, who visits the same five stores with her family at dawn every Black Friday. She was at a nearby Kohl’s store at 5 a.m.

Michael Brown, a partner at the consulting firm Kearney, who has monitored shopping behaviour for the past 35 years, reports that the crowds at the Garden State Plaza mall in Paramus, New Jersey, were lighter than in previous years.

“It wasn’t the good, old-fashioned kick-the-doors-down-type” shopping event this year, he said. Mall goers “were carrying a bag or two, not the armfuls that you would see in pre-pandemic years. They are not blowing the budget today.”

As to a National Retail Federation poll performed in early November, 8,424 adults, the most popular items on most shopping lists are toys, apparel, and gift cards. American consumers anticipate spending an average of $875 on Christmas goods, which is $42 more than the previous year.

Although it originated in the United States, the Black Friday custom has spread throughout the world and online. The significance of Black Friday as a one-day event has diminished due to the growth of online shopping.

According to data from Adobe Analytics, Black Friday saw an estimated $7.3 billion in online spending by 6:30 p.m. Eastern, a 7.4% increase over the previous year. According to Adobe, they spent $5.6 billion online on Thanksgiving.

“I think people are going to still spend on travel and leisure activities that might be online and not necessarily in stores,” said Jimmy Lee, CEO of The Wealth Consulting Group, which holds Amazon shares.

“The excitement of waiting in lines on Black Friday – there’s not as much of that anymore. A lot of people …. would rather just sit at home and look for deals.”

According to Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette, investors this month, retailers like Amazon and Macy’s started offering discounts as early as October and will probably give more as Christmas approaches.

Retailers’ main fear is whether those offers would draw in inflation-weary customers.

Best Buy is currently offering discounts ranging from $100 to $1,600 on electronics, such as laptops, flat-screen TVs, and KitchenAid mixers. This comes after the retailer informed investors this week that customers are delaying major purchases.

Department stores, such as Nordstrom and Bergdorf Goodman, have been offering high discounts on items like Oscar de la Renta earrings and Balenciaga shoes due to a decline in luxury purchasing.

Shoppers on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile were not impressed. 17-year-old Carlos Araejo-Ruiz was hoping to score a deal at Nordstrom on expensive belts.

“There was an enthusiastic factor when you’re looking forward to jaw-dropping deals. It’s not the equivalent to years before,” he said.

Paul Aheren, 69, an Indianapolis driver, recalled a time when high-end department stores had markdowns of up to 70%.

At Saks, a lot of items were on sale if you visited between 8 and 10 a.m. It’s not something you see anymore,” he remarked. “At the moment, they are getting rid of the inventory they were unable to sell. It isn’t a deal in my opinion.

A four-day cease-fire between Israel and Hamas began on Black Friday. “Shut it down for Palestine” protests were staged by demonstrators on occasion all around the country.

Online recordings show that protesters momentarily closed down the Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, conducted a die-in at a Dallas mall, and hundreds of people demonstrated outside a Puma store in Boston—a company that the demonstrators claim is the primary sponsor of the Israel Football Association.

According to Puma, it is not in favour of any political ideologies, political parties, or governments.

(Adapted from Reuters.com)