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<p>WILKES-BARRE TWP. &#8212; Thanksgiving was early this year, which means we now have more than four weeks for holiday shopping.</p><p>And some local retailers say things got off to a great start on Black Friday eve and Black Friday itself.</p><p>&#8220;It was off the wall last night,&#8221; said Chuck Sullick, general manager of Best Buy, about turnout Thanksgiving evening. &#8220;It&#8217;s been pretty busy today, too.&#8221;</p><p>Sullick said the most popular items flying off the shelves at his Arena Hub Plaza store were cell phones and smart devices like the Amazon Echo that users can control through their speech.</p><p>He said the key to making the first major shopping weekend of the holiday season a successful one is keeping employee morale up. He said the store had a few meals catered by nearby restaurants, and an employee potluck was organized for the weekend.</p><p>&#8220;We have meetings to get everyone pumped up,&#8221; Sullick said. &#8220;You have to have happy employees.&#8221;</p><p>But for customers, deals were the most important thing.</p><p>Austin Sikora, 19, Drums, was perusing the video game section of the electronics store. On Thursday night, he picked up &#8220;Call of Duty: WWII,&#8221; the latest entry in the popular first-person shooter video game series. He was out Friday to see if anything else caught his eye.</p><p>&#8220;I went (Black Friday shopping) last year, so I guess it&#8217;s a tradition,&#8221; Sikora said. &#8220;I&#8217;ll probably go to GameStop next to see what they have.&#8221;</p><p>Lisa Perna, 39, and Alyssa Jabolonski, both of Throop, said they made the drive to the Wilkes-Barre area because they find it easier to shop here than in the Scranton area.</p><p>&#8220;There&#8217;s just more room here,&#8221; Perna said of the stores in the Wilkes-Barre Township shopping centers, saying they felt less cramped than their Dickson City counterparts.</p><p>The two said they&#8217;ve already polished off most of their Christmas list.</p><p>&#8220;We got some great deals here,&#8221; Perna said as they were in line at Best Buy, carrying what she said was the store&#8217;s last Amazon Kindle. &#8220;We also found some good stuff at Dick&#8217;s and Boscov&#8217;s.&#8221;</p><p>While plenty of people were at the big-box stores for Black Friday, some local shops were getting ready for a day just for them: Small Business Saturday.</p><p>The shopping day, tucked in between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, is an initiative started by American Express to encourage shoppers to shop at local businesses.</p><p>The owner of the Bee Hive Gift Shop in the Midtown Village in downtown Wilkes-Barre said Saturday will be one of the store&#8217;s busiest days.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve been open since 8 a.m. today and it&#8217;s been busy, but Saturday will be even bigger,&#8221; Patty Leighton said.</p><p>Leighton said her store was offering 10 percent to 40 percent off items Friday, along with free gift wrapping and refreshments. But she planned to offer 20 percent off throughout her store Saturday.</p><p>The Bee Hive Gift Shop won&#8217;t be the only thing in the Midtown Village buzzing Saturday, with the grand opening of the <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/681582/business-owner-holiday-pop-up-shops-show-downtown-wbs-appeal" target="_blank">Holiday Pop-Up Shops</a>.</p><p>The shops are an experiment by the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, with 12 local retailers getting space to set up retail operations. They swing open their doors starting at 10 a.m. Saturday and continue Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Dec. 16.</p><p>Lindsay Bezick, vice president of the Chamber, said early Friday there was still lots of work to be done on the temporary shops, everything from decorations to painting signs on windows.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ll probably be here until midnight,&#8221; Bezick said with a laugh.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Austin Sikora, 19, Drums, shops for discounted video games at Best Buy on Black Friday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_TTL112517Black-Friday2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Austin Sikora, 19, Drums, shops for discounted video games at Best Buy on Black Friday. </caption0><photoCredit0>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader  </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_TTL112517Black-Friday3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Lindsay Bezick, of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, unfurls a banner to be hung outside the Holiday Pop-up Shops on South Main Street in Wilkes-Barre. The shops open Saturday at 10 a.m. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_TTL112517Black-Friday3.jpg</photo1><caption1>Lindsay Bezick, of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, unfurls a banner to be hung outside the Holiday Pop-up Shops on South Main Street in Wilkes-Barre. The shops open Saturday at 10 a.m. </caption1><photoCredit1>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader  </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_TTL112517Black-Friday1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Ben and Lynn Miller, of Berwick, carry a 65-inch television to their car outside the Best Buy store in Wilkes-Barre Township during Black Friday shopping. Some local retailers were reporting successful days. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_TTL112517Black-Friday1.jpg</photo2><caption2>Ben and Lynn Miller, of Berwick, carry a 65-inch television to their car outside the Best Buy store in Wilkes-Barre Township during Black Friday shopping. Some local retailers were reporting successful days. </caption2><photoCredit2>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader  </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Patrick Kernan</p><p>pkernan@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Patrick Kernan at 570-991-6386 or on Twitter @PatKernan</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Shopping season off to roaring start; others prep for Small Business Saturday