Some shopping centers to remain closed to early shopping on Black Friday morning

A number of shopping centers in the Bay Area will be shutting stores between Thanksgiving dinner and Black Friday morning, turning back on the recent introduction of all-night shopping aimed at boosting slow sales and propelling the spending momentum.

"Merchants are easing up on being open all night," said Caran Fisher, a spokeswoman for Westfield Valley Fair mall in San Jose. "There is a bit of fatigue and disenchantment with that kind of frenzy now,"www.contracostatimes.com reported.

According to analysts, this holiday season will likely produce sales that will be 3 to 4 per cent higher than last year.

Malls in the Bay Area would close at midnight tomorrow or 1 am on Friday. They will reopen about five hours later for Black Friday door-buster sales. Among Bay Area malls that will give consumers and employees a break this year are: Valley Fair in San Jose; Newpark Mall in Newark; Eastridge mall in San Jose; Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto; Hillsdale Mall in San Mateo; Southland Mall in Hayward; Stoneridge Mall in Pleasanton; Broadway Plaza in Walnut Creek; and Sunvalley Shopping Center in Concord.

"A lot of retailers realized that the extra effort they put into all of those extraordinary hours of sales really didn't pay off," said Mark Vitner, senior economist with Wells Fargo. "The employees weren't happy, the stores had increased costs, and they simply weren't gaining very much."

In a related development, with fall sales numbers lower than expected, many major retailers had already launched Thanksgiving season sales in-store and online a move that could shrink Black Friday crowds. However, major malls, including Aventura, Dolphin and Sawgrass Mills, would be open again tomorrow.

Those who rush to the stores will find sales on electronics, large sports equipment and furniture, plus prize and cash giveaways.

Shoppers can cut short Thanksgiving celebrations and drop in as early as 3 pm for deals at JC Penney, 4 pm for Brandsmart and 6 pm for Walmart and Target stores.