ATLANTA — Hundreds of people began their holiday shopping Friday across metro Atlanta.
Some people camped out for hours, or even days, in order to try and snag the best deals.
Several stores, including Best Buy, Walmart, Toys R Us and Target, opened Thursday evening.
At Best Buy in Gwinnett County, the lines began building at 3 p.m. Wednesday. Tae Chun, who was first in line, said he wanted video games and the $200 TV. By midday Thursday, still hours from the stores opening, the line had already wrapped around the corner of the building.
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Friday morning saw similar scenes at stores that decided to keep their doors closed on Thanksgiving.
At Lizard Thicket in Cobb County, more than 100 people lined the sidewalk waiting for the doors to open. The first 100 people received gift bags with several free items.
Black Friday is off to a much calmer start than years past. More than 100 people filed into the Lizard Thicket Boutique as it opened its doors at 6 a.m. http://2wsb.tv/2gn78Dc
Posted by WSB-TV on Friday, November 25, 2016
“The line really is to get swag bags and the prizes and stuff,” said one shopper who was camping out.
The store has eight different locations from Carrollton to Buford to McDonough. They all opened at 6 a.m.
Cash registers and credit cards already humming at Lizard Thicket boutique in East Cobb in 1st 15 min of #blackfriday pic.twitter.com/JJiPFZ9gJN
— Steve Gehlbach (@SteveGWSB) November 25, 2016
Some stores and malls decided not to open on Thanksgiving Day.
Arbor Place Mall opened Friday morning instead. The general manager told Channel 2 Action News that from a financial standpoint it didn't make sense to open because they showed no increase or decrease in profits. He decided it was more important for employees to spend the holiday with their families.
JC Penney, inside Arbor Place Mall, decided to open despite the mall's decision to stay closed. Several shoppers took advantage of its sales overnight.
One shopper told Channel 2's Darryn Moore he saved about $200, but other shoppers said they wished the stores would stay closed.
“I think it should open up Friday morning like it used to because it kind of takes away from your family," one woman said.
Triple Team Traffic and NewsChopper 2 were up throughout Channel 2 Action News This Morning Friday keeping an eye on the situation. There was some slowness near the malls, but parking didn't seem to be an issue in most locations.
Simon Malls updated parking capacity throughout the day.
Simon malls just gave us this update on the latest mall parking lot capacities around town. Looks like lots are filling fast! #ATLtraffic pic.twitter.com/Y0RU160P3P
— Triple Team Traffic (@WSBTraffic) November 25, 2016
Temperatures started cool, with temperatures in the 40s and 50s, but warmed up into the 70s in some parts of north Georgia on Friday.
Meteorologist Brian Monahan said it will be a nice day to shop or hang Christmas decorations outside.
The weekend will be much the same, sunny with temperatures in the mid-60s. Our first chance of rain will come next week, Monahan said.
Cox Media Group
