Sitting on the floor at the Greenwood Park Mall early Friday morning, a trio of women were waiting for one last store to open before wrapping up their Black Friday shopping at 6 a.m.
Fueled by coffee and the desire for good deals, sisters Kelsey and Madison Colvin and their sister-in-law, Maggie Nolder, all of Greenwood, had been up all night shopping. They began at 10 p.m. Thursday with a trip south to Edinburgh Premium Outlets. After that, they made came to Greenwood, with stops at the mall, Target and Starbucks.
Despite a long night with no sleep, the consensus among the women was clear: the deals were worth it, they said.
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Click here to purchase photos from this gallery“The bargains for kids stuff is amazing,” Nolder said.
Kids toys and clothes made up a major portion of their purchases with nieces and nephews to shop for, she said.
They were able to get most of their Christmas shopping done, Nolder said.
Nolder chose to shop on Black Friday because of the sales, she said.
Though long lines are a hallmark of Black Friday shopping, Kelsey Colvin said none of the lines they experienced were too long.
The plan after their final stop?
Sleep, they said.
Alicia Hilbert and her mother, Lisa Willer, had just started their shopping at Greenwood Park Mall at 6 a.m.
The two were sitting down for a brief breakfast before browsing the stores.
For them, Black Friday shopping is a family tradition.
Willer first began shopping on Black Friday with her mother four decades ago. Now, she carries on the tradition with her adult daughter.
This year, Hilbert said she doesn’t have a set list of items she wants. Her plan is to look and see what the good deals are.
Katherine Bilecki of Indianapolis had visited several stores at the mall, as well as Target and Walmart, and she said the deals weren’t as good as they have been in previous years.
With many stores opening on Thanksgiving Day, one exception was GameStop, which opened at 6 a.m. Friday. The deals on electronics and games drew a couple of dozen people, who were lined up outside prior to the opening.
Tony Laurenzana, who came from Bedford, was at the front of the line. He joked about how calm his Black Friday experience has been, with no fights or other issues, he said.
“We’re a docile bunch,” he said.
Laurenzana got in line to purchase a Nintendo 3DS gaming system about 4:50 a.m.
Is getting up that early worth it? Probably not, Laurenzana said, but he was there.
Toward the back of the line, Paul Deree of Mooresville was waiting to purchase a couple of video games and a controller. He had made the trip to the mall with his girlfriend, who was at another store looking for makeup.
The good prices made the early morning trip time well spent, Deree said.
Most shoppers were in agreement on one thing: They’re going to hit the sack after sacking the stores.
“I’m going to go back to sleep,” Laurenzana said.
