Kohl's LA Is Desolate on Black Friday After Starting Deals Early
Retail stores are feeling the heat as many shoppers plan to do most of their holiday shopping online. Alyssa Julya Smith ventured out to Kohl's in Los Angeles on Black Friday to check out what's going on in retail outlets. She found that, at least in the morning, not a lot of shoppers turned out for the doorbusters and in-store deals.
In fact, 59 percent of U.S. shoppers say they plan to shop online this year instead of fighting crowds at the stores. U.S. shoppers spent more than $1.52 billion online by 5 pm ET on Thanksgiving evening, which is up nearly 17 percent from a year ago.
A lot of the slowdown in Black Friday shopping has to do with the "Amazon effect," which also has a lot of brick-and-mortar stores fighting to keep up. Big stores like Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Kohls made their big deals available online, and well before Thanksgiving day, so many people are opting to shop from the comfort of their own home.
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Many factors lie behind the disconnect, but economists increasingly point to one in particular: The lingering financial and psychological effects of the worst bout of inflation in four decades.
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