WAFB Channel 9, Baton Rouge, LA |Black Friday mania hits Baton Rouge

Black Friday mania hits Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - The crowds were still buzzing at noon after running strong all morning long. The stores are offering some of their best deals and it appears most people had one or two special items in mind at a particular store to get deals on.

Black Friday is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Many stores opened their doors early to lure customers ready to begin their holiday shopping.

The first mall in the area to begin accepting customers Friday morning was the Tanger Outlets. Stores opened up at midnight, but that was not quite early enough for some people. They lined up outside until they could get in.

Some viewers called in to explain some of the extremes they went through, like parking in a Wendy's drive-thru line, just to get a chance at some of the bargains. Many stores offered discounts of up to 40 or 50 percent off all merchandise. The crowds were eager and anxious to get their hands on all of the door busters.

A handful of people got an early start lining up at Best Buy as well. They camped outside long before the store opened to get their hands on big savings. At the front of the line was Jared Boudreaux. He arrived at 12:30 a.m. Thursday to get set up. He explained the reason for his 30-hour mission.

"Well, I had to work that night and I didn't feel like having to wake up early in the morning to come, so I figured I'd go ahead and come right now," Boudreaux said. "I got an air mattress, bunch of snacks, a few books to read, just a bunch of things to keep busy."

Boudreaux also did not forget his shopping list. He planned to pick up a laptop and camera. Best Buy opened its doors at 5 a.m., so there is no word yet on whether he was successful in his Black Friday mission.

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