Black Friday starts early this year

GRAND CHUTE - Black Friday started early this year with many stores opening up as early as 8 o'clock Thanksgiving night.

About 150 million people are expected to hit the stores Black Friday through the weekend.

But this wasn't your typical Black Friday.

"I was shocked because I'm like, I thought it was going to be packed," said Tammy Huempfner of Green Bay while shopping at Target in the Fox River Mall in Grand Chute.

With many stores opening on and well before midnight, the crowds weren't what many people expected.

"It's pretty like calm, it's less than a normal Saturday," said Hanna Newcomb of Neenah.

Although there were long lines waiting for stores to open, those who came early were rewarded with some pretty good deals.

"I have made a haul, I am here shopping for Christmas presents so I pretty much have everything done," said Newcomb.

"We're definitely seeing a lot of the electronics sales, that seems to be where a lot of the gifts are this year, even some of the toys are electronics based," said Jess Leveque, assistant manager of Target in the Fox River Mall.

Still others said they were just getting started.

"I have a list of everything that I make up, I write down what I am going to get everybody, I'm a planner so I know what I'm getting. I look through the ads so I know where something might be and then I get what I came to get and get out of there," said Huempfner.

While televisions and electronics are flying off the shelves, so are gift cards. The National Retail Federation says nearly 60% of people will give gift cards this year. Many retailers are also pushing customers online, not just to shop but to find shopping deals with smartphone apps.

"No matter where you are, you can find out what's on sale at whatever store you are going to or if you are looking for a group of stores you can go to the mall app and find that same information," said Fox River Mall marketing manager Jim Zielinski.

Wile some shoppers were out since Thanksgiving night and others were just arriving in the late morning hours. Many were looking forward to getting their shopping done and getting home.

"We'll have Christmas in the next two weeks and then it's done and over with and then we can just concentrate on family time," said Huempfner. 

"That's what it's all about isn't it?" asked FOX 11's Chad Doran.

"It is, it's all about family time,” replied Huempfner.

Whether at home or the mall.

Some people are also looking forward to Cyber Monday to get some great online deals. Saturday is also Small Business Saturday. A chance to find great deals and big savings from small, locally owned businesses.