Businesses say economics are at play
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By Sarah Hinckley Staff Writer - Published: November 30, 2008
MONTPELIER – Black Friday was the busiest one Karl Miller has seen in his downtown sporting goods store.
Miller, like other vendors who joined big-box stores in offering savings, gave Vermonters a reason to shop local to kick off the holiday season. But, was it enough to keep Vermonters in their communities and away from the incredible, one-day shopping deals that lured many to the bigger cities for more savings?
"I think this is shades of what the public is expecting – they're expecting deals," said Miller, owner of Miller Sports, located on Main Street for more than 30 years. "We've had actually a very good November, but this is all relative … I think a lot of people are keeping warmer by buying layers."
And the 30 percent off storewide discount didn't hurt for those looking to save locally. It was the first time Miller Sports had offered such a deal.
Buch Speiler also offered customers 35 percent off for the first time. Damsels next door offered 50 percent off one item purchased. Capitol Stationers and the Drawing Board were among the merchants who gave customers the option of 20 percent storewide savings.
"We had an awesome Black Friday," said Eric Biggelstone, co-owner of Capitol Stationers. "I think it had everything to do with the 20 percent sale storewide. It's not typically a busy day for us. It was worth it."
Written on the sandwich board sign outside the Main Street store was, "Shop Locally, Shop Montpelier, Buy Vermont Made, Thank You." A sticker stating, "Think Local First," was stuck to outside of the cashier counter at the Drawing Board as a reminder for visitors.
"Unfortunately, it is a little quieter this year than last year," said Nathan Hidook, who sported black clothes for what has traditionally been the busiest shopping day of the year. "We had a lot of people come in, but the (sales) transactions were not necessarily a reflection of that."
Most sales at the stores were done with credit cards, a sign some consumers may be slow to shift their spending habits in tough economic times.
"Everyone's using cards," said Hidook. "We don't use cash the way we used to."
While Miller said he is excited about his store's successful start to the holiday season, he also voiced concern about purchases on credit.
"The vast majority of our sales were credit card," he said. "I can only hope that people are spending their money wisely."
Several downtown vendors agreed the day was busy, but when some compared their sales to last year's take, they were a little short.
"We were very busy," said Betzi, retail sales manager at Zutano, whose sales were down this year over last year. "We don't usually do a sale on Black Friday, but we did this year … I don't think we got as many shoppers as we hoped we would."
While working the day after Thanksgiving, Peach Tree owner Norma Segale heard from several local people that they were going to do the majority of their holiday shopping in town. But they may not have been doing it on Friday.
"It was an average Black Friday," said Segale about sales at her Main Street shop. "It's not really a downtown Montpelier day, generally."
What many vendors were seeing was a mix of locals, as well as some unfamiliar faces. A good portion of the crowd was relatives of locals going out in the capital city to see what could be found while they were in town for the holiday.
"Other than electronics, you can pretty much get everything downtown," said Segale about Montpelier.
For Jessica Turner, owner of Capital Kitchen, and Barre business owners, Wednesday was just as busy, if not busier than Friday. Turner's customers were rushing to get the proper utensils for preparing their feast.
"The day before Thanksgiving, for us, was just as busy as the day after," said Turner, adding that the month of November has been busy at the culinary supply store. "We did just as much in sales … I was in a panic that I would run out of basters."
A Wednesday sale has been a tradition at Lenny's Shoe and Apparel, perhaps longer than Black Friday has been a national event.
"That's the busiest day of the year that we have," said Katy Kennedy, assistant manager at the Main Street store that offered shoppers 20 percent off storewide. "More people showed up on Wednesday. (It) was really the day to come."
And those who came to town for the sale at Lenny's made their way around town, to the surprise of one merchant.
"It's a little strange: This year the day before Thanksgiving was extremely strong," said Bob Van Arsdell, owner of Barre Books, whose sales were up over last year for the three days surrounding the holiday. "It changes every year. Some years the Saturday is strong, some years the Friday is strong … We're happy with the weekend in general."
Whether other downtowns around Vermont saw the same activity on Black Friday as Barre and Montpelier is unclear. Large crowds were reported nationwide in chain stores, where people also were drawn to the sales.
"Everyone came in with shopping bags from other stores," said an employee at Damsels who asked to not be named. "So, it seemed like the whole town was doing good."
Contact Sarah Hinckley at sarah.hinckley@timesargus.com.
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