Is Black Friday still a big shopping day?

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Black Friday is just a few days away. Have you been checking the deals? It was once the biggest shopping day of the year  but, over the years, that has changed.

According to the International Council of Shopping Centers, Americans spend almost $400 on Black Friday shopping. Small businesses say keep those dollars in Wilmington this year.

“I don’t like crowds so I try to get everything before thanksgiving,” said Brenda O’Rurke, a Leland resident .

O’Rurke says she has already finished shopping for her grandchildren. She does not like large crowds.

Neither does Caroll Evans.

“I don’t do any shopping on Black Friday,”said Evans, a Wilmington resident. “Its too busy for me. It’s too many crazy people out there.”

Historically, the day after Thanksgiving is known for a shopping frenzy but, this year Black Friday is not expected to draw a large crowd to stores. CFCC Director of Small Businesses Jerry Coleman says businesses are starting the holiday markdowns earlier.

“Every year it gets earlier and earlier,” said Coleman. “We are trying to expand out the number of days in the holiday season because there is such an influx of shopping.”

Coleman says Black Friday only makes up 18% of yearly sales for most businesses. He says many local businesses need the money now more than ever.

“After the impacts of Hurricane Florence and all that we’ve encountered, we really need for people to shop local and take advantage of the opportunity to support our community and our small businesses,” he said.

Many local businesses were closed for weeks after the storm losing out on a lot of revenue; which means if they want to compete with Black Friday deals they’ll have to be competitive.

Coleman says, in 2016, 16.7% of businesses yearly sales were from online purchases, during this holiday season.