Levi Timmons, front right, contemplates buying a TV set in Walmart with Zach Beebe, front left, on Black Friday in Marinette. Timmons doesn’t shop online as much. “My wife does that,” he said. “I’m old school.”
Shoppers exit Menards in Marinette on Black Friday. Menards had plenty of people in the store in its early morning hours, with each group pushing their own cart of deals.
April Block, Oconto, stocks up on gifts for her nieces and nephews at Menards in Marinette on Black Friday. She makes the drive from Oconto to Marinette because it’s less busy, she said. “It’s smaller, but you can get a few different things,” she said.
Shoppers wait in line at Kohl’s in Marinette on Black Friday. With around six or seven registers open, the wait time was around five to 10 minutes before checking out.
Levi Timmons, front right, contemplates buying a TV set in Walmart with Zach Beebe, front left, on Black Friday in Marinette. Timmons doesn’t shop online as much. “My wife does that,” he said. “I’m old school.”
Shoppers exit Menards in Marinette on Black Friday. Menards had plenty of people in the store in its early morning hours, with each group pushing their own cart of deals.
April Block, Oconto, stocks up on gifts for her nieces and nephews at Menards in Marinette on Black Friday. She makes the drive from Oconto to Marinette because it’s less busy, she said. “It’s smaller, but you can get a few different things,” she said.
Shoppers wait in line at Kohl’s in Marinette on Black Friday. With around six or seven registers open, the wait time was around five to 10 minutes before checking out.
MARINETTE—People were out and about for Black Friday in Marinette, but not like they were in years before.
Bill Stechschulte of Ludington, Michigan, said he has family in Crivitz and usually shops each Black Friday, but it’s changed “big time.” At Kohl’s, he arrived an hour late and could still buy the e-bikes he wanted—only three were available for Black Friday at the store.
He was loading up on fleece blankets and two inflatable paddleboards at Menards. He owns a campground in the U.P. and some in Ludington.
“This is just the first load,” he said.
Most people ventured into the early morning, 30-degree, sunny weather on Black Friday to get together with family and have something to do, rather than arriving early to scoop up deals. Most weren’t shopping for any specials but simply nursing their turkey hangover and checking gifts off their Christmas list.
With stores now advertising deals throughout the month, the significance of Black Friday has slowly dwindled over the years, and the foot traffic in Marinette reflected the effects that COVID-19 and online shopping has had on retailers. Still, people are continuing to spend. Holiday retail sales are predicted to grow by 6-8% this year, according to the National Retail Federation.
Walmart’s balance of online sales vs. in-store certainly showed as traffic was higher than usual but not unmanageable. With six or seven registers open, Kohl’s had the longest line to check out, even though the wait time was only around five to 10 minutes. Menards had the most customers in its store.
The end caps at Menards were full to the brim with deals on fleece blankets, air fryers, drill kits and oscillating fans. Some vehicles were parked in the grass outside the Marinette location. Foot traffic felt like a busy summer Saturday, with a few more groups of families in the store, compared to the usual contractors pacing in the aisles or couples deciding which paint to buy. Everyone had a cart, which made the store more congested than normal.
April Block from Oconto said she was getting some toys for her mom to give the grandkids and scooping up gifts for her nieces and nephews. She makes the drive from Oconto to Marinette because it’s less busy.
“It’s smaller, but you can get a few different things,” she said.
She’s been shopping on Black Friday for many years and said it’s not as busy as it used to be.
“It used to be packed in here,” she said. “You couldn’t even get a cart.”
Since COVID-19, the traffic has been more manageable, she said. It was even nice to have fewer people in the store. Regardless of headcount, she still needs to make the trip out.
“I don’t do online shopping,” she said.
Levi Timmons, Marinette, said it’s his third year of Black Friday shopping. He went shopping during COVID-19 and said it’s much busier than in the past two years.
“It wasn’t like this,” he said, referencing the crowds at Walmart, “but it was still busy.”
He was looking at TVs and getting “normal house stuff,” plus toys and clothes for his kids for Christmas. He doesn’t do online shopping and prefers to shop in-store as a fun way to get out.
“My wife does,” he said. “I’m old school. I’m having my way right now.”
Around 9 a.m. on Friday, Walmart still had plenty of stock on its doorbuster items, with some still shrinkwrapped, as if they were immediately brought off the truck and placed in the aisle.
Sarah Vargo, Marinette, was also just browsing through the shelves at Walmart.
“If something sticks out, then I’ll get it,” she said.
