Joanna Gaines assists a customer looking for a handgun at Superior Firearms on Black Friday in Tyler, Texas, on Friday, Nov. 23, 2018. (Chelsea Purgahn/Tyler Morning Telegraph)

 

Hundreds of East Texans enjoyed temperatures in the mid-40s while they waited in line for stores to open on Black Friday. The longest line of people in Tyler appeared to be at the French Quarter Shopping Center where about 200 people were waiting for a gun store to open.    

Evan Woodgrift, of Tyler, played poker with Cade Hughes, of Rusk, on Thursday night and Friday morning while they waited for Superior Firearms to open.

Woodgrift said he sat up his folding chair about 2 p.m. Thursday outside the front door of the gun store. He was joined by Hughes about 3 p.m. and others began to set up behind them and even joined their poker game. 

“I’m from California,” Woodgrift said. “I moved to Tyler a few months ago and heard about the store and what they do on Black Friday so I came out with my father-in-law.” 

Hughes said he won the poker game and was looking forward to getting into the store so he could buy 20-gauge shotgun shells.  

Employees made their way down the line with firearms transaction records to make it easier for customers wanting to purchase a gun when they made it into the store.  

Security officers were in the parking lot talking to the peaceful crowd of gun enthusiasts as they waited their turn to enter the store.  

Last year on Black Friday, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, reported more than 203,000 firearms background checks initiated by Federal Firearms Licensees, according to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System 2017 Operations Report.

Inside, Superior Firearms owner Austin Rohr gave his employees final instructions about safety and dealing with the customers.  

“It’s hard to say what our biggest seller will be,” Rohr said. “We’re ready and excited about the day.” 

Rohr said he spent about nine hours at the store on Thursday and got to work about 4 a.m. Friday. 

Rohr said the first 100 people in line were entered for a chance to win a 9 mm pistol.

Chessa Hays, of Van, had a list of items her husband wanted from the store. 

When she got into the store she showed an employee a picture of the optic she needed and was led to the item.  

“I just showed them what I wanted and they took me right to it,” she said. 

Woodgrift emerged from the store about 7:30 a.m. with his gun case and other accessories he bought. 

Across the street, at Broadway Square Mall about 40 people were in line shortly before 6 a.m. at the mall’s entrance.  

When asked what they were looking to buy, the answers varied from shoes, bath bombs, Build-A-Bear and purses.  

“I’m looking for a Louis Vuitton wallet for my mom,” Brianna Cain, of Elkhart, said. “I’m going to Dillard’s. I can see the store from here and I’m going directly there.”  

Store employees said they believed the foot traffic in the mall to be slow in the early hours, but they expected it to pick up about 10 a.m. 

“We stuffed about 70 bears yesterday,” said Megan Gray of Build-A-Bear as she sewed up a stuffed Pokemon character for a customer. 

J.C. Penney’s night shift employees had about two hours left of their shift when “The Black Friday Shopping Squad” of Tammy Wells, Sherry Anderson, Mary Keck, all of Spring, and Kari Keck, of Pearland, showed up at the store. 

The ladies were all wearing blue T-shirts with the words “Black Friday Shopping Squad” printed on them.  

Wells said she made the shirts for the annual outing.  

“We got up at 3:30 a.m. to drive in from Palestine,” Wells said. “We’ve been doing Black Friday shopping together for the last 12 years and we always start at J.C. Penney.”

Anderson said they looked at the newspaper yesterday and made their plans and their list and so far the squad had been having fun and finding some good deals.  

J.C. Penney employees Diane Diamont and Sheryl Wheaton are longtime employees of the Tyler store. 

Wheaton, the store’s operations manager, said the people who worked overnight pick up and restock after the big shopping rush happens on Thursday.

“We (the night shift) don’t see the large crowds of shoppers,” she said. “We come in and say look what happened.”  

J.C. Penney was open for 32 hours straight. The store opened at 2 p.m. Thursday and will close at 10 p.m. Friday.

Rey Mendez was the first customer in line at Best Buy on Friday. 

He said he got there about 1 a.m. and fought the boredom by watching movies on his phone. 

“I want a TV,” Mendez said. “There’s a 55-inch Sharp 4K for $249.” 

Marquis Cobb spent the night next to Mendez in a bean bag chair. He also was waiting to buy the Sharp TV. 

Some people were standing; others were sitting on folding chairs. Several were wrapped up in blankets as they waited for the store to open.  

Best Buy opened at 8 a.m. Friday. At 7:15 a.m. there were about 20 people in line.