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Retailers, shoppers gear up for Black Friday
Related: Black Friday advice from shopping 'pros' Thanksgiving at the Mall of America can be a little surreal. It's sort-of open, sort-of closed. With the exception of Nickelodeon Universe, Underwater Adventures, Old Navy, the movie theater and maybe a few other spots, most stores at MOA were closed this holiday. "Feels like we're trespassing," joked Kalia Mancell, who was visiting her family in Minnesota. "It's actually kind-of nice because we were here before and you can't even walk." But shoppers could roam the mall Thursday and plot their Black Friday strategy. "We have a game plan," said Trevor Dean, who was visiting from South Dakota. "We'll see how well that goes when we try to implement it tomorrow." Outside of the Best Buy in Eden Prairie, the strategy was to get in line -- 12 hours before the doors opened. "They're going to have good deals on laptops," said Emily Souvannatlath, who was taking part in her first shopping sleep-out. She came prepared, bringing pillows, two suitcases filled with blankets, a propane tank and lots of Ramen noodles. If her enthusiam is any indication, retailers might have reason to smile this year. "You finally have the possibility of light at the end of the tunnel," says Akshay Rao, a professor at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. Rao thinks shoppers are suffering from something he calls "frugality fatigue." "They've spent all this time being very careful with their money," he said. "Finally, there's a legitimate reason and time to spend money." A survey by Deloitte shows that consumers have a better feeling about the economy this year, compared with last year. And stores are ready to pounce. "Retailers are coming into this holiday season much more prepared for what lies in front of them," says Deloitte's Scott Erickson. "They've been able to be much more strategic about how they reach the customer." The internet and social-networking sites -- like Facebook and Twitter -- have been key, Erickson says. Mobile devices will also play a key role this holiday shopping season. Eighteen percent of people plan to use their mobile phones to assist their shopping by looking up deals and comparing prices, Deloitte found. That number jumps to 40 percent for people under 40 years old. Not everyone will be buying though. Kalia Mancell will be on a plane back home to Florida this Black Friday. She'll save the shopping for later. "I'd rather pay a little more and not get trampled," she said.
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