Black Friday Off To A Slower Start Than Usual

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CBS 13) – It's not the typical rush we see on Black Friday, but the shoppers were still out to play on Thanksgiving Day. Doors at Arden Fair Mall opened at 6pm and many people found the experience to be calmer than they expected.

"The lines were not that long, it's not that crowded, parking wasn't that bad so it was cool," said shopper Eric Bodie.

"We already ate, so we didn't want to be at home bored," said Karen Cabrera.

The hundreds of people walking through Arden Fair Mall made one thing clear: the holiday rush doesn't wait for Black Friday anymore.

"It's better on Thanksgiving evening," Bodie said.  "In the evening you don't have to wake up early and run out and everything so it's cool like this."

Up and down the mall, employees stood at the storefronts enticing customers with free gifts, coupons and deals. And from Foot Locker to Macy's, the discounts were all over the board: from 50% off and Buy One Get One Free.

"As long as you eat at 1 or 12 or 12:30, yes, it's absolutely worth it," said mom Dana Quitter.

Quitter arrived at Arden at 4:30pm, but only after a busy morning cooking in the kitchen.

"Oh yeah, full meal," she said. "We got another Thanksgiving to do tomorrow. It's just busy, busy, busy.  It's the holidays right?"

Several stores did not open on Thanksgiving including Nordstrom, Apple and JCrew. They'll be among the stores opening on Black Friday.