Canadians hunting for Black Friday deals did so without facing long lines or crowded shopping malls this year, as an extended period of sales and decades-high inflation weighs on consumers and prompts some to rein in spending.

Retailers have stretched deals over several weeks and offered similar discounts online, taking some of the frenzy out of the holiday shopping event.

Several big box stores in the Greater Toronto Area, such as Best Buy and Walmart, lacked the usual early morning lineups that once epitomized Black Friday.

The Eaton Centre in the heart of Toronto appeared busy around lunchtime, but closer to a typical Friday rather than swarming with the crowds and queues seen in previous years. Few stores appeared to have lines of waiting customers.

A busy stretch of the city91裸聊视频檚 Queen Street West, which includes H&M, Zara, Aritzia and Aldo stores, similarly didn91裸聊视频檛 show signs of additional shoppers.

91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檙e seeing a dilution of Black Friday as a physical shopping event where you go to the store early in the morning,91裸聊视频� retail analyst Bruce Winder said Friday.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 finally sort of hit that tipping point where it91裸聊视频檚 much less about the day and it91裸聊视频檚 more about the shopping period.91裸聊视频�

The elongation of Black Friday sales has lessened the urgency for consumers to shop on one particular day, said Lisa Hutcheson, managing partner at consulting firm J.C. Williams Group.

91裸聊视频淭he need to line up isn91裸聊视频檛 as necessary,91裸聊视频� she said Friday. 91裸聊视频淢ost of the retailers have been on sale a good portion of the week already.91裸聊视频�

Shopper Amanda Ram said she normally comes to the Eaton Centre to check out Black Friday deals, though COVID-19 put a pause on that.

She said she normally tries to hit the mall before the after-work rush, but though it was busy she still noticed it wasn91裸聊视频檛 as packed as she remembered from before the pandemic 91裸聊视频� fewer and shorter lines, for one.

Overall Black Friday sales are expected to be strong as inflation intensifies the hunt for deals, experts say.

Yet the rising cost of living will also lead customers to 91裸聊视频渃herry pick91裸聊视频� sales, Winder said.

Ram said she91裸聊视频檚 being more careful with her money as she shops for the holidays this year. With inflation driving up the price of her mortgage and everyday essentials, she feels less likely to get caught up in the allure of a great deal, and plans to do some online comparison at home before heading back to the mall.

She said she thinks inflation is definitely affecting how many people shop this weekend and heading into the holidays.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 got to be on people91裸聊视频檚 minds.91裸聊视频�

Stores that offer blowout deals of up to 70 per cent off will be busy while retailers with more tepid discounts won91裸聊视频檛 see the same traffic online or in stores, Winder said.

91裸聊视频淚f you91裸聊视频檙e a retailer and you91裸聊视频檙e trying to move something at 25 or 30 per cent off 91裸聊视频� it ain91裸聊视频檛 gonna sell,91裸聊视频� he said.

Some retailers, especially those with high levels of inventory such as apparel, will likely offer bigger sales in stores than online.

91裸聊视频淚f the merchandise is already there and they91裸聊视频檙e running short on space, they91裸聊视频檒l want to turn it into cash 91裸聊视频� especially if they don91裸聊视频檛 have room to pack it up and hold it for another year,91裸聊视频� Winder said.

Meanwhile, after years of pandemic health restrictions, shopping in brick-and-mortar stores is expected to make a comeback this holiday season, including on Black Friday.

91裸聊视频淲e continue to see increased levels and excitement for in-person shopping across all our 18 shopping centres,91裸聊视频� Sal Iacono, executive vice-president of operations for Cadillac Fairview, said in an emailed statement.

The company, which operates a number of malls across the country including the Eaton Centre in Toronto and the Pacific Centre in Vancouver, has seen retailers extend promotions over a longer period of time but still expects Black Friday to be a big shopping day, he said.

91裸聊视频淲e anticipate Black Friday to be one of the busiest shopping days at all our retail centres and we are looking forward to continuing to see the prolonged momentum throughout the entire season,91裸聊视频� Iacono said.

Still, while some Canadians are eager to return to in-person shopping, others now prefer to do their holiday gift-buying online.

Bradley Thompson of Oakville, Ont., said he plans to do all his Christmas shopping on Black Friday 91裸聊视频� but won91裸聊视频檛 be stepping foot in a store.

91裸聊视频淚91裸聊视频檓 not a big in-store shopper. I91裸聊视频檓 a real millennial in the sense that I91裸聊视频檒l be doing all my shopping online,91裸聊视频� he said.

91裸聊视频淎s a personal challenge, I try to get all of my Christmas shopping done during the Black Friday sales.91裸聊视频�

He usually checks the sales at the big players like Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy, but Thompson said he91裸聊视频檚 increasingly also shopping at Etsy and smaller local businesses online.

Overall, he said the Black Friday deals he91裸聊视频檚 come across are good 91裸聊视频� but not great.

91裸聊视频淭he discounts don91裸聊视频檛 seem to be quite as steep as they used to be but they run them a little bit longer,91裸聊视频� Thompson said.

91裸聊视频淚nflation is crazy right now though, so every little bit I can save helps.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频� Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press