Bargains draw crowds; retailers crossing fingers

Shoppers throughout the Seattle area turned out for bargains on TVs, computers and toys Friday, raising hopes that the holiday sales season might not be as bad as some feared.

It was an encouraging sign for retailers, which have struggled in the past year as consumers curtailed their spending amid rampant joblessness.

"The stock market is up. The president seems to be doing well on the international scene, and we have much less uncertainty in all aspects of our lives this holiday season," said retail consultant Dick Outcalt, who spent Friday wandering through stores in downtown Seattle and noticed many people carrying shopping bags.

"People were very purposeful ... ,"said Outcalt, of the Seattle consultancy Outcalt & Johnson: Retail Strategists.

Preliminary sales figures won't be available until today, but initial reports suggest there were more people shopping than last year, and some even picked up an item or two for themselves.

Stores tried to attract shoppers with extended hours, discounts and other special promotions to kick-start the holiday season.

Jamie Hinsz and Saif Almazrouei, both of Eugene, Ore., bought seven shopping bags worth of jackets and sweaters at the downtown Macy's store. Hinsz described the discounts as "amazing."

"Signs would say 40 percent off for a $400 jacket, but then you'd look at the receipt and find out you paid only $98," Hinsz said. "It was just ridiculous. We're going to have to frame the receipt."

At Bellevue Square, Lucky Brand Jeans summed up the mood with a sign saying "Almost Free Clothes." The Macy's home store offered markdowns of as much as 60 percent until 1 p.m., attracting shoppers to discounted blenders, food processors, and pots and pans.

Jeannie Bowers, of North Bend, bought a down comforter with two pillows for $39 at Macy's and found other deals at J.C. Penney. She was disappointed that Toys R Us, which opened at midnight, was sold out of the things she wanted.

But, "I've done really well," she said.

In Renton, it was a 5 a.m. feeding frenzy at The Landing, with Fry's opening to sell discounted TVs and computer monitors. More people lined up outside this year than last, said Fry's manager Art Squires, who has worked at the store for six years.

"We had about 2,000 people in line when we opened the doors at 5 a.m.," Squires said. "When I got here at 3:30 a.m., there was a line around the building."

Elaine Pang, of Renton, arrived at Fry's around midnight to grab a place in line, and the payoff was a 52-inch LCD TV for less than $1,000, she said. "A year ago, these things went for like $2,000."

In Tukwila, a long line stretched outside the Kohl's store near Westfield Southcenter for a 4 a.m. opening. Mike Whatley, Kohl's district manager for Washington and Alaska, said about 300 people stood in line for hundreds of early-bird specials.

Online demand also was strong: The Kohl's Web site crashed Friday because of a surge in Internet traffic.

"Kohls.com has been unavailable for intervals throughout the day," Chief Marketing Officer Julie Gardner told Bloomberg News in an e-mail. "We are working to resolve the situation as quickly as possible." She noted that online traffic was "significantly higher" than last year's day after Thanksgiving.

Even so, widespread joblessness was on many shoppers' minds Friday.

Keith Johnson said he plans to spend less this holiday season after his wife, LouAnna Valentine, lost a job in February.

The Federal Way couple woke up at 2:45 a.m. and finished shopping at Sears, J.C. Penney and Kohl's by 5:50 a.m. They also planned to stop at Staples for computer parts and "some little things here and there," then at Fred Meyer for its much-ballyhooed half-price sock sale.

Outside the Macy's store in downtown Seattle, Melissa Lattimore, of Shoreline, said she's on a tight budget after being laid off from a business-analyst job nearly a year ago.

She yearned for a KitchenAid mixer marked down to $179. "But I can live without it," she said, "so I'm going to live without it until I have a job again."

Not wanting to miss out on a deal, some shoppers began lining up outside stores as early as Wednesday.

In Everett, about a dozen tents covered a sidewalk near Best Buy before Friday's 5 a.m. opening.

Justin Murta, of Everett, was first in line Wednesday morning, with a tent that fit several people, a 46-inch flat-screen TV and a generator. He and his girlfriend and extended family had Thanksgiving dinner and played Guitar Hero to pass the time.

"What else are you going to do for Thanksgiving?" asked Murta, who was interested in laptop computers marked down to $200.

A few tents away, Micah and Sarah Love held a position they claimed at 10 a.m. Thursday, hoping for an edge on a $1,000 desktop computer for half off. The Loves took turns bringing things from home, including a Thanksgiving dinner complete with roasted turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy and green-bean casserole.

"My computer is 6 years old, so I need a new one and decided I might as well wait until today to torture myself for a good 19 hours," Micah Love said.

The wait was shorter for Melissa King, of Lake Stevens, who arrived outside Toys R Us in Everett about 15 minutes before the store's midnight opening. By then, the line stretched past Michael's Arts & Crafts to a Top Food & Drug store on the far side of the parking lot.

But it moved quickly, and at 12:30 a.m. King had the prize: a $100 Furreal Friends pony for her toddler daughter, something she said she never would have bought for the usual $300 price tag.

Amy Martinez: 206-464-2923 or amartinez@seattletimes.com

Seattle Times reporters Nicole Tsong and Kaitlin Strohshein contributed to this story. Information from The Associated Press and Bloomberg News also is included.