As Thanksgiving Day winds down, plans are cast by many to rush out to area retailers to capture the deals available to shoppers on the traditional "Black Friday". But Black Friday has been ramped to begin much earlier this year at many locations and shoppers have hit the stores early.

Some feel that the early start time is cutting into the otherwise very special day of thankfulness. But the small degree of backlash felt will only bring big smiles to the faces of many retailers as groups of shoppers are rolling out in record numbers.

Estimates indicate that Black Friday shopping will be up by 10% of last years numbers, with over 150 million people expected to shop. These estimates are expected to be conservative as 2010 estimates were undershot by 74 million.

The photo to the left shows Jodi Williams of Dexter  joining the already long line at Toys R Us in Cape.  With an opening time of  9:00 pm, the line wound in front of Toys R Us, past Big Lots, past Hancock Fabrics, and down the street toward Cape First.  But the lines would not stop Jodi and her shopping buddy, Leigh Ann Kincy.  They were set for an all-night marathon searching for great deals. 

Among the major big box stores, Toys R Us will kick off its Black Friday sales at 9 p.m. Thursday night, followed by Wal-Mart at 10 p.m. Then, at the stroke of midnight, Target, Best Buy, Macy's and Kohl's all plan to open their doors.

If you haven't made the trip tonight, there is still time throughout the weekend.  Please remember our local retailers here in Dexter.  Your dollars spent locally stay in our community and make us stronger. 

In fact, the Corner Cottage in Dexter held a special "Mingle Jingle" on Thursday from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM Thursday night, hosting shoppers to hot cider and beautiful selection of Christmas decoration.

Happy Shoppings.