SUNSET, Florida. (WSVN) – Thanksgiving is over, and meaning the Black Friday frenzy has begun. Many South Floridians consider that sleep is overrated as they arrive at malls before dawn looking to take advantage of special offers and discounts.
The hunt for one of the best deals is on on Black Friday.
“What time did you get here?” – asked Alex Browning from 7.
“‘4:00 a.m.’ is our third year,” said the teenager.
“What keeps you coming back?” he asked Browning.
“Tradition. It’s nice to come as a group. We have to get to know people, just like our friends next to us,” she said.
“What’s on the list? What are you trying to catch?” he asked Browning.
“Everything,” she said.
Everything was apparently in sight for this group, who concluded that each one was according to plan.
“We have a strategy where each of us takes an item and chooses for the other. We have everything planned,” the woman said.
They weren’t the only eager shoppers who waited hours for the doors to open at Sawgrass Mills Mall.
“I will be here every year. I wake up at 3:00 a.m. and I’m here,” the buyer said.
“I’m shopping for myself, my mother and my grandchildren,” the patron said.
“The whole family was ready in one day,” Browning said.
“The whole family. Yes! Good sale. I do this at Sawgrass Mall every year,” the patron said.
Shoppers wanted every little thing from clothing to leather goods.
“We find that for most things it’s a good 50%, and for some things it’s even more. We’re seeing 60-70% off some stuff here,” said one other shopper.
Some people do their Christmas shopping in a single go.
“We’re going to the Nike outlet, Tory Burch, Marc Jacobs and whatnot? Lala-Lulu-?” said the customer.
“Lululemon,” Browning said.
The shopper laughed that she had mispronounced the brand name and said the gift was for her daughter.
“She’s a daughter, she wants everything,” she said.
Shoppers are grateful for a day full of opportunities stuffed with laughter, socializing and, of course, spending money.
