AP Photo/Jenny Michael

And many local retailers are now getting in the spirit of what has become known as "Black Friday".

VPR's Neal Charnoff reports.

(Charnoff) The term "Black Friday" is commonly applied to the day after Thanksgiving, one of the busiest shopping days of the year. 

For retailers, it's a time when they move "into the black", meaning they begin to show a profit on the year's financial bottom line. 

Tasha Wallis is the executive director of the Vermont Retail Association. 

She says that while national retailers have been targeting Black Friday consumers for years, local retailers have often treated the day as an extra holiday, and haven't even been open for business.

Wallis says that's beginning to change. 

(Wallis) "We're seeing many more local retailers being open, offering special deals, and also being part of some sort of downtown celebration.  Montpelier, for the second year, is having a Black Friday celebration, they're gonna have black balloons out there, horse-drawn carriages, things to draw people into the downtown area and to get into the shops."

(Charnoff) According to Wallis, consumer confidence is up, but after a year-long recession, shoppers are still being careful with their spending.

(Wallis) "Consumers are more discount-oriented than ever.    People are thinking about the perfect price really, rather than the perfect gifts."

(Charnoff) Wallis warns that this is not a good year for bargain-seeking shoppers to wait until the last moment to shop.  She says many store-owners are keeping their inventory low in order to cut costs. 

(Wallis) "I know that some consumers haven't responded to the inventory concerns saying, ‘Well, it's another marketing thing.' But it's very clear that many stores just have fewer items on the shelves." 

(Charnoff) Wallis says that in the Upper Valley, retailers understand they will lose customers to New Hampshire, where there is no sales tax.  But she says sales remains strong in the northern part of Vermont.

(Wallis) "We're fortunate in the northern tier to have Canadian visitors come down and shop. And with a strong Canadian dollar, that can make a difference to many retailers." 

(Charnoff) Wallis says that this year, consumers are less willing to take on credit card debt, so retailers should expect to see shoppers paying with cash or debit cards. 

For VPR News, I'm Neal Charnoff. 

Listen to Neal's entire interview with Tasha Wallis