As diverse as Americans are, we all can be divided among just two distinct groups: shoppers and non-shoppers.

Shopping is a very individual character trait. You either are a shopper or you aren’t. At no time is that more evident than during the rush of the holiday shopping season.

If ever there was an occasion for a shopper to celebrate, or a non-shopper to cringe, it was Friday. That traditional day-after-Thanksgiving-Day rush created just for the die-hard shoppers, the people who live to browse the aisles and wait in line to purchase.

Not only is it a tradition, it’s an indicator of who well merchants can expect consumers to perform during the holiday season. That’s important because the holiday season, for most retailers, accounts for about one-third of annual sales.

Wal-Mart is undoubtedly pleased.

Last year, on this traditional shop-till-you-drop day, Wal-Mart reported sales of $1.25 billion. This year, the behemoth chain took in $1.43 billion nationally. There were more shoppers and they spent more money. If economic analysts want to analyze consumer confidence, they ought to duck into one of the nation’s 1,500 Wal-Mart stores.

Not everyone was at Wal-Mart Friday, though. Plenty of early birds flocked to malls, K-Mart stores and specialty shops to take advantage of 6 a.m. bargains.

At the Auburn Mall, people were impatiently checking their gift lists outside J.C. Penny’s even as employees were putting up last-minute sale signs. Elsewhere in the mall, the line at KB Toys stretched along several store fronts long before the toy shop opened for business.

On any other day, the early bird shoppers would be the folks who want to avoid the lines, who want to get their shopping done before the hordes. Not Friday. Getting there first meant getting first crack at the bargains and store owners were only too happy to accommodate eager buyers.

In the frenzy of the season, though, shoppers must remember what it must be like for non-shoppers. And vice versa.

The National Retail Federation has predicted a 4 percent increase in holiday sales this year, which means more people in stores carrying away more packages.

So, if you’re a shopper, imagine yourself a non-shopper just momentarily. Imagine how daunting the holiday season must be.

And, if you’re a non-shopper, imagine yourself a shopper. Imagine how giddy you might feel with the prospect of a month’s worth of bargains ahead.

As we, divided into these two categories, encounter each other in stores, clashes are virtually guaranteed.

While this may be the season for shopping, ’tis also the season for patience. In stores. In parking lots. With clerks. And with each other.
jmeyer@sunjournal.com

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