Calm Black Friday: What happened to the long lines, big crowds?

Today is Black Friday – and typically, that means long lines and big crowds as people rush to discover great deals on holiday purchases.

However, it was a quiet and rainy morning outside Best Buy at Crabtree Valley Mall – and calm inside the mall as well.

"Everything is online nowadays," early shopper Hudson Smith said. "You find all the deals on there. You just order right there from the comfort of your home. So, I mean, I don't blame them, but I'm just here for the experience."

"This is not what I expected," said one shopper, who braved the rain to find great deals – and found short lines and empty aisles. Most shoppers told WRAL News they were pleasantly surprised by the lack of crowds.

Could the lack of crowds be attributed purely to heavy rain this morning? Or perhaps inflation has people tightening their budgets?

Could it be because 'Black Friday' deals have begun lasting all week or even all month at some locations, lessening the impact of the day itself?

“I think it’s accurate to say that online sales now account for as much as 40% of Black Friday sales,” said Scott Rankin, principal and national consumer and retail strategy leader with KPMG US.

At Best Buy, a large pile of boxes marked as online orders proved people had ordered their deals on the Best Buy website ahead of time, and could now arrive at leisure to pick up their items.

“Black Friday has definitely transitioned more into a digital affair in the past five years,” said Neil Saunders, retail analyst and managing director at GlobalData Retail. “The focal point is not that single day anymore. It’s an event spread out over several days.”

Against today's economic backdrop, the National Retail Federation — the largest retail trade group — expects holiday sales growth will slow to a range of 6% to 8%, from the blistering 13.5% growth of a year ago.

Adobe Analytics expects online sales to be up 2.5% from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31, a slowdown from last year's 8.6% pace, which was higher even though shoppers were still uncertain about returning to physical stores.

Analysts consider the five-day Black Friday weekend, which includes Cyber Monday, a key barometer of shoppers' willingness to spend, particularly this year. The two-month period between Thanksgiving and Christmas represents about 20% of the retail industry’s annual sales.

With Black Friday seemingly losing steam, is there potential for more people to begin focusing on Small Business Saturday? Small Business Saturday was created to encourage consumers to Shop Local, allowing local businesses get a share of some the holiday shopping revenue enjoyed by larger stores.

Downtown Cary has a walkable shopping district with tons of unique shops and local goods,

Holiday shopping made easy with our guide

Shop local: Best gift shops in Raleigh and across the Triangle