CHARLESTON, W.Va (WCHS) — Black Friday crowds have been getting smaller, with shoppers choosing to participate in cyber-Monday instead.
Black Friday shoppers are 18% more likely to shop online rather than in store, according to Capital One.
Although those in store crowds have dwindled, shoppers still use the weekend to hunt for the best deals.
Black Friday has been a staple across the nation since the 1950s, and although it’s seen some changes throughout the years, millions of Americans head out bright and early to find the best deals.
“Well, I think it’s not going to be chaos at the stores. The statistics that I’m seeing are that Black Friday is really important to consumers still. Black Friday and cyber-Monday are absolutely still a thing,” shopping expert, Trae Bodge said.
In 2023, 200.4 million shoppers across the nation took part in finding deals on Black Friday through cyber-Monday, according to the National Retail Federation. They said 122.7 million of those were in store, and 134.2 million were online.
“On cyber Monday, the deals tend to broaden. So it’s on a larger range of items. the other thing about cyber Monday, which is interesting, is that sometimes if retailers don’t have a really strong black Friday, they might have the flexibility to offer deeper discounts on cyber Monday,” Bodge said.
Some said cyber Monday is the more convenient option.
“I feel like you get better deals online, you don’t have to deal with the crowds. I mean, store discounts just aren’t as big as they used to be,” retail employee, Nicholas Deitsch said.
Deitsch said although he hasn’t dealt with out of control shoppers on Black Friday, he has dealt with those heavy crowds.
“I actually worked last Black Friday. It was a madhouse still, don’t get me wrong, but the deals just weren’t there for it.”