Brushing off snowflakes from her hair, Teagan Hickson walked into a Fort Wayne, Indiana Walmart with hopes of snagging a few holiday deals on Black Friday. The first item that caught her eye: a pallet stacked high with Gourmia digital air fryer ovens for $50 each. However, her sister Jordan was in need of one and the family was struggling with tight finances. Hickson was worried about expenses rising in 2025 after President-elect Donald Trump plans to implement new tariffs, making her hesitant to make purchases.
As retailers reopened stores after the American Thanksgiving holiday, some locations attracted clusters of shoppers eager to see the Black Friday deals and compare prices with competitors online. At the same Walmart, Hickson spotted Samsung TVs, Dyson vacuum cleaners, Lego toys, Levi’s jeans, and air fryers for sale.
Americans spent an estimated $7.9 billion online through 6:30 p.m. ET, an 8.2% increase compared to last year, as Adobe Analytics reported. Average discounts reached 25%, compared to 26% a year ago, and peaked at 24% for TV deals.
Cristal Lopez, another shopper, planned to spend around $1,000 to $2,000 on holiday purchases, roughly the same as last year. Evelyn Contre waited in a 20-person line at a Lululemon store with her two daughters, having checked the website for deals ahead of time.
Early crowd traffic was sparse at a Santa Barbara, California Macy’s despite its 50% discounts on home goods and clothing. Retiree John Dillard shopped for Levi’s jeans and cited bargains as being important to him.
Additionally, Target offered deals including buy two, get one free on certain products for its Circle members, among other discounts. Despite struggling to make ends meet with inflation, shoppers still intended to splurge, recognizing that the holiday season lasts for only 26 days compared to 31 last year.