CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — About a dozen shoppers lined up outside the Best Buy on Koger Center Boulevard to snag deals on Black Friday.
Jillian Cortez and Derek Lopez purchased two televisions and a laptop on discount.
“The laptop was half off, and we got it for $400. He’s going to be using it for his photography business that’s coming up,” Cortez said.
While Black Friday is more laid back compared to the hectic day from previous years, the couple said it was necessary to show up to shop in person versus online.
“Going in person is a little more personal than online because you get to ask those questions that are necessary than just facing a bot and you’re buying into something,” Cortez added.
Others planned to skip the brick and mortar and focus on finding the best deals online.
“We're probably going to do Cyber Monday. We try to stay out of the stores on Black Friday,” Matthew Carly said.
Jill Auty said, “I'm not really sure if the deals like going to the stores are necessarily worth it, but I don't know. I think people are online shopping a lot more this year.”
Jeff Smith, a supply chains professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, said it’s understandable why many will choose to skip going to a store to purchase presents.
“It's the easiest way. Realistically, you don't have to physically go to a store and you can just do it from the comfort of your own home,” Smith said. “It's great for the consumer. It puts more stress on the retail and back end supply chain, because now you've got an extra layer of logistics.”
A 2025 Economic Impact Survey from Nationwide showed two in five consumers or 42 percent say they plan to spend less this season.
Nearly half (49%) are buying fewer gifts, over a third (38%) are opting for cheaper gifts, and one in five (20%) say they won’t buy gifts at all.
According to a recent RetailMeNot survey of 1,100 US shoppers, nearly 8 in 10 (78%) shoppers feel economic strain and say economic factors are impacting their holiday plans.
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