Shoppers will be out in force again on Friday, and if forecasts are accurate, they will be willing to open their wallets wider this year. For the second straight year, retail officials indicate they expect to see a fairly significant increase in sales. And judging by the comments by Bladen County merchants, they agree with the forecasts.

Often called Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving has become the single most important shopping day for many in the retail industry. The term Black Friday is derived from the fact that many retail organizations judge whether they will have profitable year based on results from that day.

According to the latest Shopping in America survey, this year's Black Friday promises live up to its reputation and bring smiles to the faces of retailers around the country. The survey results indicate that 28 percent of consumers plan to begin their holiday shopping on that day and that 63 percent of those shoppers will be women.

The forecasts are good news for merchants and officials of the North Carolina Retail Merchants Association (NCRMA). Retail sales slumped in 2001 and 2002, leaving many in the industry worrying about their survival.

The events that occurred on 9/11 impacted the mindset of Americans creating what many believe was a level of cynicism not seen since the Depression, according to North Carolina Retail Merchants Association (NCRMA) officials. However, they indicate they believe the public is regaining its confidence in the economy, which will again translate to more buying during the holiday season.

"For the better part of 2004 there have been reports that we are transitioning into a stronger economy. Yet we find that especially during the election campaign season, there are people who still act and think like the economy is in trouble and will not improve," said NCRMA President Fran Preston.

"This type of cynicism is dampening many of the trends associated with economic growth with one being the all-important holiday shopping season," Preston explained. "We believe strongly that it has been the consuming public who has helped pull the U.S. out of recession and that these same consumers will be present and accounted for this holiday shopping season."

The National Retail Federation projects a 4.5 percent holiday sales growth over 2003 numbers, placing holiday sales figures at nearly $220 billion. Last year sales increased by 5.1 percent after being down in 2001 and 2002.

"With everything that is going on in the world, the war in Iraq, economic challenges, and the presidential election, we feel that consumers will still find a way to make their holidays bright, and they will do this by shopping to their hearts content," said Preston.

Here in Bladen County, the mood among retailers seems positive.

Ricky Leinwand of Leinwand's in Elizabethtown said that he is expecting a very busy holiday season.

"We are gearing up for a really busy (holiday) season this year and have ordered about 25 percent more inventory just for the holidays," he said. "Used to be, we purchased primarily by season-just twice a year. But now, we purchase up to six times a year and one is especially for the holidays. It's a primary part of our business year.

"Elizabethtown is a great place to shop," he explained. "We've got a great little town, and we appreciate the local folks giving us a chance first. We feel like we don't take a back seat to anybody. We're a part of the community and we want to stay a vibrant part this community.

"We hope folks remember that the dollars they spend here in Elizabethtown go directly back into the local economy and that a larger percentage of the tax revenue collected in Bladen stays right here," said Leinwand. "Those are really good reasons to shop here first.

"We, the merchants of Elizabethtown, support the various charities, school functions, and other community activities that make this community such a great place to live. We hope people remember that when they do their Christmas shopping. We realize that we will not get it all, but we just ask that people give us a chance before looking elsewhere.

"We, the downtown merchants, feel like we're very competitive with regard to price and selection, and I can guarantee you we will give everyone better personal service," Leinwand added.

Trey Melvin of B.C. Moores in Elizabethtown said he, too, expects to see a really big weekend and hopes holiday sales will be a record.

"We have a lot of incentives to bring customers in the store this weekend with both prices and selection of merchandise," said Melvin. "We feel like we have almost anything they can find anywhere else. The selection and prices are here. Furthermore, you don't have to drive 25 or miles to shop here.

"We believe we give excellent customer service, and that we go the extra mile to make them happy. Shop at home."

Joe Thornton of the Elizabethtown Wal-Mart said he expects this to be a very good year.

"We've got a real good selection of merchandise this year and we're hoping everyone will come by and take a look to see what we have," he said. "It's hard to say exactly what to expect in term of sales, but we expect it to be a very good year."

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