Despite the sunshine and crisp fall air, Black Friday in San Francisco did not draw the frenzied deal-searching of years past.
San Francisco shopping destinations such as Union Square, San Francisco Centre and Stonestown Galleria experienced different levels of foot traffic without the hallmark lines of shoppers vying for deeply discounted items.
At Union Square, a shopping district hard-hit by retail theft and the pandemic, top luxury brands sell high-end goods in charming storefronts.
An associate at the Omega Boutique, who was not authorized to speak on behalf of the store, said business was “a little slow for an average Friday,” adding that the district was “extremely quiet.”
Luxury products like Omega watches aren’t discounted at the boutiques, “so it’s not like you’re missing any Black Friday deals,” he added.
But Macy’s was hopping, gussied up for the holidays with cuddly pets in the windows courtesy of the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, reviving a decades-old holiday tradition.
The San Francisco Police Department boosted the presence of officers there and in other key shopping districts for the holiday shopping event. An officer at Central Station said police are on the lookout for a protest against the fur trade.
San Francisco Centre was very quiet. The former Westfield Mall has lost its Nordstrom, movie theaters and close to half of its stores in the post-Covid economy.
Business at Stonestown Galleria was brisk, especially at Asian-centered retailers like Uniqlo, Daiso and Miniso, in line with the mall’s emerging reputation as “Japantown West.”
See photos of the not-so-frenzied Black Friday shopping scene:
