Retailers Open Early

Black Friday will start a day early for some retailers in hopes of bringing their sales figures out of the red during the year’s biggest selling season, which starts this week.

Mall officials said they are hoping for a better holiday retail season, which will boost the county’s mixed economy.

While some South Coast businesses, such as Santa Barbara’s new REI outdoor gear store, will close their doors for Thanksgiving, others plan to stay open or start selling at midnight. REI will open at 9 a.m. Friday.

However, the Old Navy retail clothing store on State Street will be open all day on Thanksgiving. Many other State Street clothing stores will have openings at varying times around daybreak on Friday.

Last year, Macy’s in Paseo Nuevo mall opened at 5 a.m. and was swamped by bleary-eyed shoppers. However, this year, Macy’s at both Paseo Nuevo and La Cumbre Plaza will open at midnight, said Mary Lynn Harms, marketing manager for Macerich. That company that runs both Paseo Nuevo and La Cumbre malls.

Express and PacSun in Paseo Nuevo also will open at midnight Thursday, Harms said, while American Eagle, Gal, Gap Kids, and Gamestop will open at 5 a.m. on Friday, with Bath & Body Works and Victoria’s Secret set to start an hour earlier.

Gymboree, Janie and Jack, Lane Bryant, and Motherhood Maternity at La Cumbre Plaza also will open at midnight Thursday. Starbucks opens at 3 a.m. on Friday, Love Culture at 3:30 a.m., Sears and Wet Seal at 4 a.m., Toys R Us at 4:30 a.m., and Gamestop and PacSun at 5 a.m.

Harms said some other mall shops will open around dawn, but most will operate from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday.

At Goleta’s Camino Real Marketplace, property manager Mark Ingalls said most businesses would close for the holiday, except for the movie theaters. “Best Buy will open at one minute past midnight,” he said.

With about all of Camino Real Marketplace’s space leased for the big holiday retail season, Ingalls said merchants expect a successful Black Friday with improving sales through the end of the year.

First comes Black Friday, then Small Business Saturday, and after that Cyber Monday.

November 26 marks the second annual Small Business Saturday, which is a day to support the small businesses that create jobs, boost the economy, and preserve neighborhoods around the country.

Small businesses have generated two out of every three net new jobs during the past 15 years and employ over half of all private-sector employees.

The South Coast Biz Blog is a roundup of the latest business news in the Santa Barbara area and is written by Ray Estrada, restrada_2001@yahoo.com, who has covered business in the region for numerous publications over the past couple decades. See more at independent.com/biz and wordpress.com/southcoastbizblog.