Black Friday Baldwin County

Shoppers came early and in record numbers at the Tanger Outlet Center in Foley. The discount mall was "Bargain Central" for Black Friday shoppers!

"I started at about six-thirty this morning," says shopper Candee Abercrombie.

"So far, so good," says shopper Misti Blair. "I'm here every year so it seems to be as busy as normal, last night was busier, I started shopping at five a-m."

Crowded stores, packed parking lots...customers parked where-ever they could to take advantage of Tanger's discounts and holiday specials. Traffic control was a challenge for the Foley Police Department. Officers had to call the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office to help out. But the department's mounted unit had an advantage over the massive crowd.

"We're very visible to people and we can also see up here," says Lt. Charles Massey with the Foley Police Dept. "We can see across the parking lot."

Wall Street and the national economic crisis had shoppers watching their budget.

"I work in real estate so it's definitely playing into my shopping habits," says Blair.

"I'm trying to do everything more by cash than I am charging so hopefully next year, it'll be a little bit better."

Despite shoppers pinching pennies, managers at Tanger say it's not stopping them from making a profit. Black Friday sales are up ten percent from last year's after-Thanksgiving Day shopping blitz.