MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It seems like the days of crowds lining up for early morning Black Friday doorbuster sales are over.
Best Buy opened their doors at 5 p.m. Thanksgiving and crowds continued to pour through until the early morning hours Friday.
“It beats waking up at 3 a.m. To beat everybody here,” said Wesley Walters.
Walters, who was shopping at the Best Buy in Cordova, decided he wasn’t waiting until Black Friday, but he did wait until after 10 o’clock on Thanksgiving night to find deals.
He wasn’t alone.
WREG was there as anxious crowds made their way into Best Buy in Southaven when it opened at 5 p.m.
Employees there started showing up at 1 p.m. Thanksgiving afternoon.
Assistant manager Jeffery Phaneuf said the holiday shopping craze starting earlier alleviates some of the pressure.
“This is the craziest time of the year. I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t love it,” he said.
When the line was long, Best Buy staggered the number of customers they let in at a time.
Shoppers said people seemed to be in the holiday spirit.
“Everybody is nice, no one is fighting for anything, so that’s good,” said one customer.
According to MPD at one point Best Buy in Cordova’s security team called them about a pregnant woman being assaulted.
However, a spokesperson with MPD said once they got on scene they determined the woman was thankfully not injured.
It wasn’t just Best buy with the crowds, Target saw them too.
“I’ve never seen the line like this,” said Brittany Washington.
Washington said she decided to leave the Target on Poplar in East Memphis because the lines were too long.
While many people chose Thanksgiving to get a head start on their shopping, others have doubts and think the day should be spent with family.
Walters said he got the best of both worlds.
“I’ve spent pretty much all day with my family it’s kinda nice to come get something you want!”