Greenwood merchants are expressing optimism heading into Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year.
Mike Goldberg, co-owner of Conerly’s Performance Sports, said sales at the store have been going well for several weeks.
“We’re seeing very strong sales this week. To be honest with you, the whole month of November has been very, very good to us,” Goldberg said.
Conerly’s will open at 7 a.m. Friday. The same goes for Goldberg’s — the family’s flagship store — on Howard Street.
Although Black Friday draws a lot of media attention, it’s the monthly sales in their totality that can make or break a retailer, Goldberg said.
“Every day has got to show up strong,” he said.
Anthony Ola said his businesses, Ola’s Shoes Inc. and Anthony’s, are also experiencing a boost in sales in advance of Black Friday, and he hoped it would continue.
“We’ve had a good Christmas business already,” he said.
Both of Ola’s stores will open at 8 a.m. Friday to allow shoppers to browse their aisles.
“People get out early. They want to get their dibs on the best merchandise,” he said.
Howard Smith, owner of Smith & Co., said his sales leading up to Black Friday have also been strong.
“We’ve been pretty busy the last week. It picked up with the cold weather,” he said.
Smith said besides the drop in temperature his company has benefited from an increase in hunting-related apparel and accessories. He said the Wednesday before Thanksgiving is usually quite good.
Smith & Co. will be open at 9:30 a.m. on Friday and will offer a special on camouflage clothing.
Greenwood is a waterfowl destination, and hunters throughout the region come through and spend money as they go, he said.
“If you every ride by our hotels and restaurants, you’ll notice all the pickup trucks from out of state,” he said.
Walmart will be getting a jump on Black Friday by staying open tonight.
Charles Hand, Walmart’s assistant manager, said the retailer will hold specials on selected merchandise beginning at 6 tonight and running through Friday.
J.C. Penney will be open beginning at 8 tonight and will stay open through 9 p.m. Friday, Manager Jamie Underwood said.
Doorbusters will be announced beginning at 8 tonight and will run through 1 p.m. Friday.
“We’ve got an extra 15 percent off merchandise from 2 p.m. Friday until closing time,” Underwood said.
The store will offer specials on a variety of items including pillows, luggage, boots and kitchen appliances.
One particularly popular item, the 2013 Disney Snow Globes, will be given away free beginning at 4 a.m. Friday and will be available as long as supplies last, she said.
• Contact Bob Darden at 581-7239 or bdarden@gwcommonwealth.com.
