thedailytimes.com : Your 24/7 news source

These boots were made for shopping Black Friday at Foothills Mall in Maryville.

The boot boxes were stacked atop tables at the entrance to the Belk Women's Store, and they were attracting a crowd. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to call it a mob. Gentle mobsters, no doubt, but determined to get what they wanted.

The 23 tables stacked with boots were goal No. 1 for many of the early bird shoppers that rushed into the store at 4 a.m. Friday -- the earliest opening ever for Belk.

Customers picked up five or six boxes at a time and headed to sportswear. They'd find an empty corner, sit down, try on boots and protect their selections. Even boots hidden in back stock beneath the curtained tables were fair game during this frenzy.

"Customers eventually found those and were digging in there, so we had to put people out there to help them," said Bunker Handly, manager of Belk at the mall.

No problem. He was loving the action.

"It was really exciting. Today has been ... " Handly hesitated, considered how to quantify the success of Black Friday sales, so far.

"We're running up about a couple of digits up in sales, so we're pleased."

That comes after the Foothills Belk had a good October, one of its strongest in years, Handly said.

Shoppers didn't buy only at the big stores. Smaller retailers have adjusted, too. Example: Razberries, a boutique across from the Blount County Courthouse.

"We had people waiting out the door at 6 a.m. when we opened," said Raina Kant, who owns the store with her husband, Kyle. "It's been a great morning. Life is good."

Razberries carries clothing, accessories, jewelry, lots of purses.

"Brighton, Vera Bradley, Pandora and then everything in between, head-to-toe."

'It worked!'

The store opened early for Black Friday in 2008, but this year was better, according to Kant. It didn't hurt that Jazberries sweetened the pot. To the first 80 customers who spent $100, the boutique gave a $48 Vera Bradley tote.

As she talked, Kant kept an eye on the front door, greeting customers as they entered. As a stylish 30-something woman arrived, Kant was animated.

"Hey! Look how cute you look! You look so cuuuute -- it worked!"

Kant explained: "She was in last week shopping with her husband."

The customer beamed and responded: "And I forgot one of the sweaters."

Kant, again: "Ohhh! Grab the sweater. I put more sweaters out, purple. That other sweater that she likes is now purple."

So what are people looking for?

"People want customer service. They don't get that anymore, and we give it. We have personal shoppers that shop with you and help you," Kant said.

Not everybody was searching for the ultimate shopping experience.

Terry Orr, a 23-year-veteran of the Blount County Sheriff's Office, said most of his shopping had already been taken care of before he got to the mall.

"We just went to Hallmark to pick up some ornaments," he said.

Also at the mall, Erika Shepherd's grin stretched almost ear to ear. She had a new digital camera to play with. To her, Black Friday was almost an afterthought.

"I didn't get up early like everybody else. I kinda woke up at 6 and said, 'I'm gonna go shopping.' I talked to one of my friends, and he was already in line by 3. I was like, 'That's goofy.'"

Out in the mall parking lot, Debbie Justice, of Greenback, certainly seemed to be prospering.

"The van's about loaded," she said.

With a flat-screen TV, microwave oven, "tons" of clothes, and other stuff.

"We got a good deal."

What was it like out there?

"Crazy, as usual."

Why shouldn't it be? Nothing tops Black Friday for competitive consumers.

"This is the Super Bowl for shopping," Justice said.

With all the hustle and bustle, one corner of Foothills Mall was a calm port.

A few steps away from the boot tables at Belk was the office of Grace Church of the Foothills. Church members -- like they have every other day since the office opened a month ago -- were handing out free bottles of chilled water in the hallway. Inside was coffee, chips, baked goods and other snacks. The homemade sausage balls had already disappeared.

The church plans more for their second Black Friday. They were caught a unawares this first time. They didn't realize the action would start well before 8 a.m.

"Next year we'll be here very early -- probably serving hot chocolate for all those people who've been standing out in the cold," Geyer said.