Black Friday shoppers spend with caution

NEW YORK — Shoppers, who had snapped their wallets shut since September, turned out in force Friday to grab early morning deals and hard-to-find items like Elmo Live and the "Wii Fit" exercise game, but many said worries about the economy have them focusing on fewer gifts and less expensive, more practical items.

Preliminary reports from major retailers including Macy's, KB Toys Inc., Best Buy Co. and Toys "R" Us and mall operators such as Taubman Centers Inc. said the crowds were at least as large as last year's. But analysts said sales Friday may not match the year-ago levels as Americans, worried about layoffs, dwindling retirement accounts, and tightening credit, slash their holiday budgets, even for their own children.

"I've always filled the tree. But you have to be honest," said Shannon Keane, 38, of Cary, N.C., a single mother who was recently laid off from her job. "This year, I'll do the best I can." She was out with her 13-year-old son, Miles, at a local Wal-Mart, buying one item: an iPod.

"He really wanted this one thing," Keane said. "So we're here for this one thing."

And while the steep price cuts — which were even more aggressive than the deep discounting offered throughout the month — are great for consumers, such moves are expected to depress sales and profits in a season that many believe could show a rare contraction in spending, according to Janet Hoffman, managing partner of the North American retail practice of Accenture.

At a Milwaukee Wal-Mart store, Shirley Jackson, a technician, arrived at about 8 a.m., too late to get a 42-inch Polaroid HDTV selling for $598. Instead she focused on the necessities, buying shoes and pajamas for her family and stocking up on 500-threadcount sheets discounted to $20 from $70.

"It's just as well I didn't get the TV. I have to focus on what I need — I need sheets, I need groceries," said Jackson, who is in her 40s. "I'm spending a whole lot less this year. I have bills to pay, and I don't want to have it come down to choosing between buying medicine and buying groceries."

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, received its name because it historically was the day when a surge of shoppers helped stores break into profitability — into the black — for the full year.

But this year, with rampant promotions of up to 70 percent throughout the month amid a deteriorating economy, the power of this landmark day for the retail industry could be fading.