Claudia Peschiutta
GLENDALE -- While others plan to spend the day relaxing and recovering
from gluttonous Thanksgiving feasts, George Temourian is looking forward
to a tough day at work.
After years of working at K.B. Toys in the Glendale Galleria,
Temourian knows the day after Thanksgiving is the busiest one of the year
for the toy store.
"You can't walk in the store," he said. "It's a very hectic, busy,
crazy day."
To better accommodate the line of holiday shoppers that normally forms
outside the door early the day after Thanksgiving, K.B. Toys moved its
opening time up to 5 a.m. this year.
Other mall locations, including major department stores, will open at
7 a.m.
The eagerness of the galleria's retailers is understandable.
Annette Bethers, the mall's senior marketing director, said about
150,000 potential shoppers are expected to roam through today.
That's more than twice the number of customers the galleria sees on a
typical weekend, she said.
"We're expecting this season to be a strong one for us," Bethers said.
Sales at the mall are up about 10% over 1999 figures and popular
stores, such as Sephora and Anchor Blue, have been introduced this year,
she said.
Though the day after Thanksgiving is often described as the busiest
shopping day of the year, Bethers said it's really the Saturday before
Christmas.
But the Friday following Thanksgiving is definitely a big day for
retailers, said Richard Giss, an analyst for Deloitte & Touche, a
professional services firm.
"There's a real focus around the day," he said. "Many people will have
been buying gifts for a while but they're still going to go out the day
after Thanksgiving."
Many people have the day off of work and want to spend time with
friends and family members, which leads them to go shopping, he said.
"It's called 'Black Friday' because of all the black ink they use to
write sales checks on this day," Bethers said.
Giss said he expects this year's holiday sales to top those from 1999,
but added that concerns about fuel prices, the presidential election and
the stock market could temper spending.
"Even though consumer confidence is at a relatively high level, it has
been coming down," he said.
Nationwide, holiday sales will probably increase by 1% to 2%, he said.
"The underlying economics of this holiday season are still very good,"
he said.
AROUND THE SHOPPING BLOCK
The following is a list of Glendale Galleria store hours for today.
For more information, call 240-9481 or visit the mall's Web site at:
www.glendalegalleria.com.
* The mall will be open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
* JCPenney will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
* Macy's will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
* Mervyn's will be open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
* Nordstrom will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
* Robinsons-May will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
