Black Friday 2023: Small Business Deals, Mall Hours For Shopping Around Alexandria

If you plan to kick off holiday shopping after Thanksgiving, here's what is planned for small businesses and when malls are open.

ALEXANDRIA, VA — While many stores no longer open on Thanksgiving for early holiday shopping, Black Friday continues to be the official kickoff for the holiday shopping season at malls as well as Alexandria's small businesses.

This Black Friday is shaping up to be a busy one. A survey by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics found an estimated 182 million people in the U.S. will shop in-store and online from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, up 15.7 million from last year. The majority of projected shoppers will be hitting the stores and online shops on Black Friday, when the National Retail Federation expects 130.7 million people to shop.

The organization also expects record holiday shopping during November and December. An estimated $957.3 billion to $966.6 billion is expected during the holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation projection. By comparison, last year's holiday sales were $929.5 billion.

Find out what's happening in Old Town Alexandriawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Even as many Americans start holiday shopping after Thanksgiving, some retailers have offered pre-Black Friday sales during October or November. Other trends for this holiday shopping season include more mobile and app shopping, benefits for retailer members, and buy now, pay later programs, according to BlackFriday.com.

While Black Friday is often associated with steep discounts at big retailers, it could be a chance to shop at small businesses. Over 50 of Alexandria's small businesses will participate in Plaid Friday, offering some of their best deals of the year. Shoppers will find early bird deals, storewide discounts and free gifts with purchase on home décor, chic fashion, gourmet food, classic toys, gifts for pets and more. Select stores will offer early bird discounts starting at 6 a.m. including Pacers Running, Red Barn Mercantile, The Dog Park and more. Shoppers can visit coffee shops opening at 6 a.m., including Coffee Shop at Fontaine, ESP Tea & Coffee and both locations of Misha's Coffee.

Find out what's happening in Old Town Alexandriawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Malls are another popular location for Black Friday shopping. Northern Virginia's malls will generally be closed on Thanksgiving and open for extended hours on Black Friday.

Here are the Black Friday mall hours on Friday, Nov. 24 around Alexandria:

Fashion Centre at Pentagon City