Local retailers counting down to 'Black Friday'

Christmas is a month away but retailers across North American are counting down the days to their biggest event – ‘Black Friday’ - a U.S. phenomenon that is making a bigger impact on Canada each year.

Retailer Kevin Stuart says he anticipates this weekend will be busiest one of the year at his St. Stephen, N.B. store, which will have extended hours on Friday to accommodate additional travelers.

“You have a lot of Canadians going south while the roads are still good, going south to see whatever deals they think they can find,” he says.

Stuart says Black Friday was his best sales day of the year in 2012 and he expects record sales this Friday too.

He says many shoppers who stop into his store on the Black Friday weekend are Maritimers who travel through the area before crossing the border into the U.S.

“It’s a little bit of a drive from Moncton or Saint John to Bangor and they’ll probably stop in Calais to fuel up or get coffee or get groceries on their way home,” he says.

Crossing the border for the Black Friday weekend has become a tradition for thousands of Maritimers, who head to places like Bangor and Portland in search of door-crashing deals.

The annual shopping event presents both a challenge and an opportunity for communities along the border, whose retailers aim to keep local shoppers spending their dollars closer to home.

Advertisements are popping up is many Maritime newspapers in an effort to discourage shoppers from heading to the U.S. and encouraging them to buy local.

But, if history is any indication, many Maritimers will be hitting the road this weekend.

“We see a number of people from Nova Scotia, P.E.I., from Moncton and Fredericton who are coming through this area specifically for the Black Friday deals that are going on in the States,” says Jeff McShane, who manages a candy shop in St. Stephen.

Border authorities are also preparing for Black Friday. Extra staff will be on hand to handle the rush of bargain hunters at the border.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Mike Cameron