Black Friday lived up to Nava Ottenberg’s expectations.
Ottenberg, owner of Persona Vintage Clothing & Costumes, said her store had a rush of shoppers on Black Friday, and the sales were a much-needed boost for the local retail scene.
“You wish you didn’t have to do these madness days and people would be aware of local stores,” she said. “You do anything you can to bring them in.”
According to data from the National Retail Federation, Black Friday weekend brought in about $59.1 billion nationwide. An estimated 247 million shoppers visited stores and websites this past weekend.
Several Gainesville retailers ran special promotions for Black Friday, cashing in on the shopping holiday dominated by big-box stores.
Ottenberg said she marked everything down 15 percent to help attract shoppers and bring in more business.
She said campaigns to support small businesses have helped bring attention to the clothing store.
“We’re trying to bring local people in here,” Ottenberg said.
Andrew Schaer, owner of Hear Again Music and Movies, said he didn’t have any special deals on Friday. Instead, the store offered limited-edition vinyl records.
“When I got here in the morning to open up, there were 40 to 50 people waiting,” he said. “It was a really big turnout.”
He said Miles Davis titles sold the fastest. The store still has some limited edition items on display, but he said the majority of items were sold during the weekend.
Steven Kirn, executive director of UF’s David F. Miller Retailing Education and Research Center, said he doesn’t think local stores should try to compete with department store prices on Black Friday.
“They’d do much better if they focused on things that would make them successful in the long run,” he said.
He said smaller stores should focus on providing good customer service and unique merchandise to attract customers.
While some stores received the typical post-Thanksgiving rush, others had only a trickle of customers.
Hayley McIntosh, a sales representative at Wolfgang Clothing, said the store saw fewer customers over the weekend because students weren’t in Gainesville.
“It’s harder to get people to come in on breaks,” she said. “We can’t really control who’s here for Thanksgiving.”
She said 14 people visited the store on Black Friday, while about 50 people typically visit on sale days.
Kirn said national sales this weekend increased from 2011.
“I think it’ll be a good holiday season,” he said.
Wolfgang, located at 1127 W. University Ave., displays its clothing on Monday. The store is among the Gainesville small businesses that held Black Friday sales.
