Few Friday blues

COSTA MESA — Omayra Aniya planned to shop mostly at one store Friday morning at South Coast Plaza.

Given how long it took to get inside, she didn’t have time for many others.

The Hawaii resident, who flew in to Orange County to visit her family for Thanksgiving, had a few hours to shop for her two children before she boarded her return flight. Aniya got in line for the Disney Store shortly after the shopping center opened at 8 a.m. She was still waiting 40 minutes later, as the staff let in only a handful of customers at a time to keep the crowd manageable.

“I’m going to try to get as many things as I possibly can after I’ve been in line this long,” said Aniya, who works as a flight attendant and has a 3-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son.

The day after Thanksgiving is commonly known as Black Friday, one of the year’s premiere shopping days, and South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island both stirred early to accommodate the rush of holiday buyers. Stores at both shopping centers opened as early as 5 a.m., while employees parked off site to free thousands of spaces for customers.

The National Retail Federation predicted in September that this year’s holiday season would have the slowest sales growth since 2002, due to a sluggish economy and a dip in the housing market. By mid-morning, though, shoppers flooded South Coast Plaza. Fashion Island, which commenced the holidays with its tree lighting last week, drew a more modest but steady crowd.

“What’s not to love? It’s the day after Thanksgiving,” said Debra Gunn Downing, South Coast Plaza’s executive director of marketing. “Business is good. Customers are happy.”

South Coast Plaza opened an hour earlier at 8 a.m. Friday to reflect crowds arriving earlier, Gunn Downing said. A number of stores got off to an even earlier start, with Sears, Sports Chalet and others letting in their first customers at 5 a.m.

Shoppers said they knew the crowds would be hectic Friday, but they ventured out anyway to get a leg up on the season — or, in some cases, just to take in the scene. Greg Zimmerman, a financial officer from Newport Beach, said he and his family weren’t looking for anything in specific when they drove to South Coast Plaza.

“It’s fun just to be with the crowds and see all the action,” he said. “It’s kind of a sense of camaraderie.”

Fashion Island also got started before dawn, as Circuit City opened at 5 a.m. and Macy’s followed an hour later. About 700 people lined up outside Circuit City for laptops, televisions and other electronics.

The smaller retail centers around Newport-Mesa also drew crowds on Friday. Monet Quick, the marketing communications director for the Lab and the Camp on Bristol Street, said the twin alternative malls had filled almost to capacity.

“It’s been great,” she said. “It’s been tough to find a parking space at both places all-day long. I got here around 10, and the parking lots were packed.”

MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at michael.miller@latimes.com.