Photo by Ryan Lely
The local Sonoma Valley economy felt the first surge of holiday shopping in the days surrounding Thanksgiving. But, instead of lining up in the middle of a cold night to be first in the door for bargains, shoppers in Sonoma took a civilized approach. Residents showed guests around town, strolling the Plaza, and shopping for planned and impulse buys, or took them wine tasting and sight seeing up and down the Valley.
(Editor’s note: The term “Black Friday” has been in use since the ‘70s, when it became a catch-phrase for the heavy traffic at stores on the day after Thanksgiving. It refers to the beginning of the period in which retailers are “in the black” – that is, turning a profit instead of remaining “in the red.”)
Nationally, the National Retail Federation said 147 million people shopped at stores or online, up 4.8 percent from 2006. But the average amount they spent was $347.44, down 3.5 percent from a year ago. As deep discounts drew shoppers, total retail sales rose 8.3 percent on the Friday after Thanksgiving, according to an informal survey by ShopperTrak, a retail analyst firm, and online sales jumped 61 percent at shopping.com.
“Shopping in Sonoma is more of an experiential activity,” said Laurie Decker, head of the Sonoma Economic Development Partnership. “Black Friday tends to be about discounted sales at malls and big box stores. Sonoma retailers regard the weekend after Thanksgiving as a kickoff to the holiday season.”
Traditional categories like jewelry profit from husbands and boyfriends who start checking off their Christmas gift list for wives and girlfriends at stores like Sonoma Silver and Vineyard Jewelers, which saw a steady stream of shoppers, over the weekend. Children and grandchildren propel a large number of shoppers to toy and clothing stores. Carla Haskell, owner of The Toy Shop, had a busier than usual weekend, with many grandparents coming in to pick out presents for their grandchildren.
McCaulou’s manager, Laura Hayman, reported that the store has enjoyed “phenomenal growth overall this last year.” McCaulou’s recently revamped its main store, adding a full junior department and a shoe department for men and women. Hayman notes that the store does not do major sales ads for Black Friday, but has a season-long approach that features specials and promotions.
At Eraldi’s Menswear and Shoes, Friday and Saturday were both big shopping days, according to Dan Eraldi. “We were very busy with a mix of locals and visitors.” Sonoma Home had the same experience, “The combination of the weather and families seeing the town together brought quite a few more shoppers in,” said Michelle Willis. Like the other retailers, Sonoma Home plans for a season-long rather than a one-day “make it or break it” approach.
Well-known wineries like Sebastiani that get crowds holiday or no holiday, had a fruitful weekend, “We don’t promote big sales or try to compete with the malls on Black Friday,” said John Calmeyer, director of marketing and public relations. “We do have some events planned; on Dec. 20 we will be open in the evening, with a shopping service just for men to help them pick out gifts for their wines and girlfriends.”
Heart of Sonoma Valley (HOSVA), an association of wineries in the northern Valley, held its winter Holiday Open House on Friday and Saturday, and over 3000 people visited the 19 participating wineries. HOSVA director Josie Gay said, “The event this year was very successful ,with wine sales up and people reporting a more focused experience.” Tickets were limited to 3,200 to create a better quality interaction for the visitors and wineries. Landmark Winery saw about 1,000 people each day, said Mary Colhoun. “We had great wine sales, and magnums did especially well. We actually had repeat customers and a lot of local residents, which was great to see.” Name wineries like Landmark and fresh finds such as Audelssa, one of the newest premium wineries, all gained economically from the HOSVA weekend.
“Cooperative marketing programs allow businesses to participate in promotions and advertising that have a much greater impact and reach,” said Laurie Decker. “Through events like the Olive Festival and others, Sonoma can be a ‘four-season’ destination and benefit businesses all year long.”
