Crowds Thinner At Big Atlanta Mall On Black Friday

ATLANTA (AP) - The holiday shopping season got off to its traditional start Friday, with stores slashing prices to lure customers, who were expected to be especially bargain conscious this year due to the shaky economy.

Dubbed Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving is usually characterized by long lines and jammed parking lots. But, at Atlanta’s Lenox Square Mall, parking spots were easy to find by mid-morning and lines in most stores were seldom more than three or four people deep.

Some stores, like the Apple store, were crammed with shoppers, but in many others, salespeople stood around idly.

Seasoned Black Friday shoppers commented that the crowds seemed thinner than in years past. But many of those who did turn out were rewarded with deeply discounted merchandise.

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