Neither driving rain nor economic woes could keep shoppers at bay this morning as Vicksburg residents and guests converged on the town’s stores for bargains.

The biggest shopping day of the year — known as Black Friday because retailers depend on brisk business to ward off red ink — got off to an early start with the Outlets at Vicksburg opening at 11 p.m. Thanksgiving Day and stores in Pemberton Square mall opening as early as 4 this morning.

Jeff Woods, the store manager at The Home Depot, 50 Halls Ferry Park Road, said around 40 people were waiting at the door when he opened up just before 6.

“I got here and saw the crowd standing in the rain,” Woods said.

“I decided to just go on and let them in and let them have at it. I am from California, so I am used to big crowds, but I was impressed with the number of people who came this morning,”  he said.

“We had to circle the parking lot twice to find a spot” at Wal-Mart SuperCenter, said Scott McCullough of Vicksburg, who had made his way to The Home Depot for its opening

 “The rain and the economy don’t seem to be keeping people away so far,” McCullough said.

Vicksburg resident Lori Bufkin said she wouldn’t miss the day’s events no matter the weather.

“I’ve been doing this for 23 years,” said Bufkin, who was shopping with her daughter, Cassie Bufkin. “It’s a special day for us. We have breakfast somewhere, like Waffle House, and read the sale papers and plan our strategy for the day. It’s a combination of the sales and the rush that make it so special. It’s the start of the holiday season and I just love Christmas. I even play Christmas music in my car while we’re going from store to store. We’ll always do this if we can.”

The day’s sales also brought in out-of-towners like Matthew and Monicah Brumfield, who are from Hattiesburg. “We stayed at a hotel here last night and got up early this morning,” said Monicah Brumfield. “The traffic is just so bad in Hattiesburg that we wanted to try shopping somewhere else. We’re going to hit several stores in Vicksburg and then make our way to Jackson.”

A third Hattiesburg resident, Candis Coleman, was in Vicksburg visiting family and said she was glad to be a part of the day’s sales.

“Times are hard but there’s nothing we can do to stop Christmas from coming,” Coleman said. “We might as well go on and prepare for it. And the sales have been really good this year. I really feel like the stores are helping us out because they know we’re hurting.”

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Contact Megan Holland at mholland@vicksburgpost.com.