Local businesses strive for Black Friday sales

Though their doors didn?t open at midnight, local retailers are hopeful that this year?s Black Friday will be one for the books. A number of store owners have opted for extended sale days this week instead of hours, giving shoppers a chance to save while avoiding chaotic malls and long lines.At Tri-City Sales in Salem, Black Friday is more of a week-and-a-half long opportunity to save. According to Sales Manager Jeff Kennen, their big sale started Nov. 17 and runs until Nov. 28 with regular business hours every day. Kennen said stretching the holiday sale has been most effective for the store, as much of their clientele are loyal customers who appreciate good service as much as value.?I?m sure a lot of people don?t want to wait in long lines, and they get much more personal service here. It?s also quicker because there isn?t as much of a rush for everyone to get here at the same time, and they?re not spending hours in the process of purchasing the items,” he said.The store is running an eight-page sales flier with major appliances and televisions at doorbuster prices in order to compete with the superstores. Kennen said they?re anticipating a good turnout today with the deals they?re offering on washing machines and dryers, dishwashers, televisions and a number of other items popular during the holiday season.?By getting the flier out early, people can decide exactly what they want ahead of time and they don?t have to wait until it?s really busy to get it,” Kennen said.?We think this year will be even better than last year with what we?re hearing on the news and the general consensus that they?re expecting more people, and advertising is stronger this year than last year.”Richard Covert of Richard Covert TV & Appliances in Lynn also said they?ve advertised their holiday deals early this year to encourage shoppers to buy local all week long, rather than just today.?On Black Friday people feel like they have to go to the mall or superstores, but we price reduce several items every day during the week and we feel that we?re very competitively priced, especially on name brands,” Covert said. “So they don?t have to wait ?til Friday for big markdowns and they certainly don?t have to get up at the crack of dawn.”Covert added that their weeklong deals are especially useful for those in the market for new appliances, since it?s difficult to put off buying a refrigerator or washing machine until Black Friday. Major sale items at Covert TV & Appliances include washing machines, Blu-ray DVD players and televisions of all sizes. The store also carries police scanners, which Covert said are difficult to find since many large stores no longer carry them.While the superstores feel pressure to hype up the sales, Kennen and Covert both said that Black Friday is more of a perk than a necessity for their stores, making it that much more enjoyable.?We?re not like the big-box retailers that depend on the last five weeks of the year to hit quotas. We?re a busy store year round, thankfully,” Kennen said.Tri-City Sales, located at 272 Highland Ave. in Salem, will be open today from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Richard Covert TV & Appliances, located at 334 Broadway in Lynn, will be open today from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.Jessica Trufant can be reached at [email protected].