When Black Friday hits on Nov. 27, the owners of Elite Repeat, a consignment clothing store on Southeast Third Street, will discount all black items by 25 percent.

Elite Repeat’s sale is not intended to compete with chain retailers like Best Buy or Walmart, which both plan to begin selling highly discounted merchandise at 5 a.m. on Black Friday. Instead, the owners of Elite Repeat want to introduce more people to their store, especially those who are low on cash and looking for a deal.

“Everybody is watching their pocketbooks,” said co-owner Abby Voluse. “If they can get a great deal on fabulous clothes, that’s what they’re interested in.”

Black Friday, a day when stores open extra early and sell their merchandise at rock-bottom prices, is historically one of the three top-performing shopping days of the holiday season, according to shopping industry analyst ShopperTrak.

But because people are watching their spending in this still-unstable economy, most retailers — no matter how much they discount their products — might be facing an uphill battle this year on Black Friday.

When the recession gained strength last year, many shoppers cut their holiday spending, according to store owners and industry experts. And the forecast for this year isn’t looking much better.

Deloitte LLP, a national consulting and financial advisory firm, released a study in September that estimated spending from November through January would be roughly the same as last year. The National Retail Federation published a survey by BIGresearch in October saying adult consumers plan to spend about $682 this year on holiday shopping — about $20 less than the average in 2008.

Retailers understand consumers are watching their spending. But both large and small businesses are still hopeful their Black Friday sales will encourage people to buy.

They’re also throwing in a few extra deals to entice shoppers.

The REI store in the Old Mill District is beginning its winter sports sale on Black Friday. In addition to that, however, the store is opening its doors early, at 8 a.m., and handing out reusable bags — each of which will contain a gift certificate for between $5 and $100 — to the first 300 customers who enter, said Stacy Butler, operational supervisor for the store.

Fred Meyer is holding its annual Black Friday sale for the six hours following its 5 a.m. opening, and is trying to draw customers to the shopping spree with free coffee and doughnuts. Bend Store Director Mike Roth said he couldn’t yet release sale details, adding that other sales will continue through Sunday.

Roth said his store’s sales were good last year, despite reports that retail suffered nationwide. The September study by Deloitte reported year-over-year holiday spending decreased in 2008 for the first time since 1967.

“Customers are still going to spend their money, they’re just going to spend it wisely,” Roth said.

Carlos Chan is one of many Bend small-business owners who plans to discount his merchandise on Nov. 27. Chan said he won’t open Showcase Hats and Apparel early, but he does plan to sell clothing for 50 percent off, hats for 20 percent off and shoes for 40 percent off.

He thinks people are waiting for Black Friday sales. “That’s when I’m going to get my stuff, too,” Chan said.

Down Minnesota Avenue from Chan’s business, Larie Borden, the owner of Clutch, has already seen many people scouting out deals for holiday shopping. If someone buys a bag from her store on Black Friday, she’ll sell them a wallet for half price, she said.

Borden made the same deal last year and said it dramatically improved sales.

“Shop locally, spend your holiday money here,” she said. “I think people want to do that, but they just forget.”

Some of the deals at larger stores such as Walmart can be pretty hard to pass up, however. Black Friday ads from Walmart and a few other chain stores have leaked onto the Internet.

Walmart confirmed Thursday that it will sell a 50-inch flat-screen television for $598 — $300 less than the retail price. Walmarts nationwide will begin their Black Friday sales at 5 a.m., even if the stores are open 24 hours a day, said spokesperson Anna Taylor.

Other chain stores are opening even earlier. Both JCPenney and Sears will open at 4 a.m. to catch the true early-bird shoppers. Both stores will have “doorbuster specials” that last a few hours, as well as deals that continue throughout the weekend.

Teresa Daily, the store manager at Target, said she opened at 6 a.m. last year, but plans to open at 5 a.m. on Nov. 27 to better compete with other stores. Daily said she is ordering large stocks of electronics and toys because holiday shoppers want those items.

“We’ve been studying for this since October,” Daily said. “We’re well prepared.”

Although Daily is supplying her store with extra electronics and toys, many retailers are buying less inventory this year, said Kathy Grannis, media relations manager for the National Retail Federation. After lower-than-expected holiday sales in 2008, many stores were forced to sell leftover items at a loss to clean out their inventory. They want to avoid that problem this year, Grannis said.

An online sales trend similar to Black Friday, called Cyber Monday, has caught on in recent years. Grannis said retailers began noticing an uptick in online sales on the Monday following Thanksgiving, which they aided by beginning to offer online sales.

“(Retailers) put their heads together and realized that people seemed to not have finished all their shopping,” Grannis said. “It’s the kickoff to the online holiday shopping season.”

The National Retail Federation has a Web site, www.cybermonday.com, that lists retailers who plan to offer online deals.

Deals in Bend

A sampling of local stores’ opening times and deals on Black Friday:

Best Buy

63455 N. U.S. Highway 97, Bend; 541-383-5850

Open: 5 a.m.

Sale: Items in every department Nov. 27 and 28, or until stock runs out

Clutch: A Handbag Boutique

124 N.W. Minnesota Ave., Bend; 541-306-3099

Open: 11 a.m.

Sale: Buy a handbag, get a wallet at half price

D’s Hobbies

757 N.E. Greenwood Ave., Bend; 541-389-1330

Open: 10 a.m.

Sale: A yet-to-be-determined percentage off top-selling products, such as paintball guns

Elite Repeat

950 S.E. Third St., Bend; 541-382-7202

Open: 11 a.m.

Sale: 25 percent off all black items

Fred Meyer

61535 S. U.S. Highway 97, Bend; 541-385-6667

Open: 5 a.m.

Sale: Various discounted items from 5 a.m. to 11 a.m., then additional sale prices throughout the weekend

The Home Depot

63465 U.S. Highway 97, Bend; 541-382-1020

Open: 6 a.m.

Sale: Will have 20 to 30 different items on special through Saturday

JCPenney

63455 N. U.S. Highway 97, Suite 93, Bend; 541-382-2351

Open: 4 a.m.

Sale: Doorbuster sale until 1 p.m. on Nov. 27, then additional sale items available through Sunday

Macy’s

3188 N. U.S. Highway 97, Bend; 541-317-6000

Open: 5 a.m.

Sale: Details were not available

Pegasus Books

105 N.W. Minnesota Ave., Bend; 541-388-4588

Open: 11 a.m.

Sale: 20 percent off board games, such as Settlers of Catan

REI

380 S.W. Powerhouse Drive, Bend; 541-385-0594

Open: 8 a.m.

Sale: Kickoff of winter sports sale, plus first 300 customers get free reusable bag with gift certificate of between $5 and $100

Sears

3188 N. U.S. Highway 97, Bend; 541-388-5746

Open: 4 a.m.

Sale: Doorbuster specials until noon, then various sales throughout the weekend

Showcase Hats and Apparel

118 N.W. Minnesota Ave., Bend; 541-647-2246

Open: 10 a.m.

Sale: 50 percent off clothing, 20 percent off hats, 40 percent off shoes

Target

63435 N. U.S. Highway 97, Bend; 541-330-1434

Open: 5 a.m.

Sale: Handing out gift cards until noon; various sale items available

Walmart

20120 S.W. Pinebrook Blvd., Bend; 541-389-8184

Open: 5 a.m.

Sale: Various sale items for an indeterminate amount of time