Retailers around Jefferson City reported strong sales and heavy foot traffic as customers sought Black Friday discounts and deals.
Some customers ventured out looking for deals on game systems, TVs and other small appliances. Others came out because they shop on the day every year.
As the holiday shopping season kicked off, industry groups expected sales to increase as the weekend continues.
Shortly before 6 a.m. Friday, Sarah Coe, of Holts Summit, waited outside Target on Stadium Boulevard with just 15 other people. Nearby, a few dozen more people sat in cars waiting for the doors to open.
Coe was out until 1 a.m. the night before at stores. For shoppers like her, Black Friday is a yearly ritual that means snagging huge savings. A few spots ahead of Coe stood Dan Pavely, whose 11-year-old son, Gage, drew him out on Black Friday for the first time.
Pavely said his son wanted a NASCAR game, but Gage said he was fine with simply getting his hands on an Xbox for the first time.
As sunrise began to peek over the horizon, a drive-by observation at about 6:15 a.m. confirmed Menards on Stonecreek Drive was by far the busiest store over Target, Dick's Sporting Goods and Kohl's on Stoneridge Parkway and Walmart on West Stadium Boulevard.
Menards' parking lot was full to the point that vehicles were parked on the grass and on the sidewalk on Hard Rock Drive, and people could be seen walking to the store down Stonecreek Drive from the Walmart parking lot.
"Oh man, it's been crazy," said Ryan Olson, general manager of Menards' Jefferson City store. "This is the busiest I've seen it."
Olson said hot sellers during Menards' morning doorbuster sales included small appliances like air fryers and pressure cookers. Kitchen knives and copper-plated pots and pans also sold well, he said. By about 2:30 p.m., with temperatures hovering around 75 degrees, Olson said seasonal Christmas decorations started to sell well.
"The Christmas aisle is so full you can hardly move," Olson said.
Here Today Assistant Manager Adam Smith said the new store on Missouri Boulevard had a great first Black Friday.
"It's gone really well," Smith said. "We've exceeded our expected (revenue) number probably 50 percent more than anticipated."
Smith said hoverboards were one of the store's hottest sellers. By about 2 p.m. Friday, Here Today had sold about 100 hoverboards with about 130 left to sell.
Here Today opened its Jefferson City store in late October. The store sells home and outdoor decor, clothing and groceries at discount rates. Smith said the store had the second highest first week among about 10 stores the company now has open.
Smith said traffic from neighbors Aldi and Hobby Lobby helped drive shoppers to the store Friday.
"I also think that us being here is helping drive traffic into them as well," he said. "I think of it as being a good neighbor."
Tara Sipples, a manager at Target's Jefferson City store, said sales were steady throughout the day.
"We try to make it a great tradition," Sipples said.
Target said in a news release Friday that a 55-inch Westinghouse TV, a 50-inch Samsung TV, a 43-inch Element TV and a 32-inch Polaroid TV were some of its most popular sellers. Other hot sellers included giant plush teddy bears, Pokemon games and Nerf toys, the company said.
The National Retail Federation expected retail sales to increase between 3.6 percent and 4 percent this year to between $678.8 billion and $682 billion. Much of the growth was expected from continued growth from online sales, with online shopping being more popular in its holiday survey of consumers for the first time.
About 70 percent of Americans, or 164 million people, were expected to shop or consider shopping during the Thanksgiving weekend, the group said.
The NRF expected traffic to be spread out throughout the Thanksgiving weekend, with 32 million people expected to shop on Thanksgiving Day and approximately 106 million people expected to shop today and Sunday. Black Friday was expected to remain the busiest single day with 115 million people shopping.
The NRF said an annual survey showed 66 percent of Americans shop over Thanksgiving weekend to take advantage of promotions and discounts. About 26 percent of people, like Coe, shop because it's a tradition.
Despite the heavy traffic, the NRF said the holiday shopping season still has a long way to go.
"Only 12 percent of consumers have completed at least half of their shopping, while only 2 percent have finished all of their holiday shopping," the NRF said in a news release.