Black Friday , the post-Thanksgiving shopping frenzy that attracts throngs of bargain hunters to stores, faces a paradox this year: record crowds are expected, but consumers’ appetite to spend has dropped sharply.
The day, traditionally marked by pre-dawn lines outside retailers and “doorbuster” deals on electronics and appliances, emerged as a cultural phenomenon around the late 1980s, when shoppers began racing to stores with Christmas lists even before the Thanksgiving
