Local patrons take advantage of bargains at Blytheville businesses

Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is on the horizon, bringing with it a wide variety of traditions and celebrations. One time honored tradition for many is "Black Friday" shopping, which has risen to new heights in recent years turning into a weekend long event that both business owners and consumers look forward to.

A big trend in many stores is having special sales and hours on Thursday evening, getting a jump on the Black Friday shopping events. Wal-Mart had sales beginning at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday evening, and Black Friday deals starting at 8 a.m. Friday and continuing throughout the weekend.

This year, JC Penney opened at 8 p.m. Thursday night for early sales, a first for the store, according to manager Barbara Bradley. The sale lasted from 8 p.m. Thursday-9 p.m. Friday, a 25-hour run that Bradley said customers took advantage of.

"We were pretty steady," Bradley said, "We really had more people here, especially when we opened, than I thought we would have."

The more-than-day-long sale didn't slow workers down, as they were back in the store Saturday morning at 8 a.m., ready to "get right back at it", according to Bradley.

But the "big box" stores weren't the only ones opening late at night for the post turkey and pie shopping crowds. Me & My Sister/Merle Norman and That Bookstore In Blytheville both opened Thursday evening, at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. respectively, and stayed open until 10 p.m.

Proprietors for both stores said the special hours brought in a steady stream of customers both Thursday night and throughout the day on Friday.

"We did well on Friday, but we were really busy Thursday night. We always have a big crowd that night," said Me &My Sister owner/operator Lori Hixson. "It's good for us, but I also think it's good for our customers. They seem to really enjoy coming out and it's a lot of fun. Plus, this year we've got the Small Business Saturday which is such a cool thing, especially as a small business owner."

Likewise, TBIB benefitted from the extra hours on Thanksgiving.

"We had a good night, had quite a few people in here," said TBIB owner Grant Hill. "And Friday was pretty busy for us too. What was nice is you could kind of tell that for a lot of people they were getting out with their families, a lot of which probably used to live here but no longer do."

While big sales events, such as Black Friday or Small Business Saturday, are simply a tradition for many shoppers they often have a much deeper impact on the local economy than some may realize. Hubbard & Hoke owner George Hubbard said retailers are not the only ones benefitting from the events.

"When the customers come in and buy something we're obviously benefitting from that, but that money then often goes back out into the community maybe in the form of radio ads or newspaper ads," Hubbard said, "I don't know many locally owned businesses that don't turn around and by as much as they possibly can here in Blytheville."

cpinkard@blythevillecourier.com