Merchants both big and small across the North Olympic Peninsula are preparing to welcome the historically brisk after-Thanksgiving shopping binge with special sales and promotions, as well as earlier hours at some.

The day after Thanksgiving is traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the year, with roughly 97 million shoppers nationwide expected to brave the rush, according to a recent National Retail Federation shoppers’ survey.

Some 140 million people nationwide are expected to shop over the holiday weekend — today, Friday, Saturday and Sunday — according to the survey. That’s a decrease from about 147 million people last year.

In Clallam County, some retailers from the West End to Sequim are slated to open early Friday.

Among them are Swain’s General Store at 602 E. First St. in Port Angeles, which will open at 5 a.m. Friday, three hours earlier than on a normal business day, said manager Don Droz.

Swain’s will have a number of Friday-only deals, Droz said, including offering gift cards at 20 percent off, meaning a $100 card could be bought for $80.

“That’s kind of a big one,” Droz said.

Just east of Port Angeles, Maurices women’s clothing store will open two hours earlier than usual at 8 a.m. Friday, store manager Corene Wickland said.

Wickland declined to offer details on the plans Maurices has for Friday, other than saying the store’s entire stock will be on sale.

“I can’t tell everybody what it is,” she said.

“It’s going to be a surprise.”

The store, which moved from downtown Port Angeles to its new location at 2743 E. U.S. Highway 101 in the east Safeway shopping center this summer, will have a wide selection of all types of women’s clothing available, Wickland said.

“So when people walk in trying to think of an outfit, we’re going to be able to dress them from head to toe,” Wickland said.

Many stores in Port Angeles will have specials during Small Business Saturday.

Walmarts in both Port Angeles at 3411 E. Kolonels Way and Sequim at 1110 W. Washington St. will be open all night tonight into Friday morning.

Walmarts nationwide are offering post-Thanksgiving Day sales at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. today and again at 8 a.m. Friday.

The national retailer giant will have 65 percent more inventory on television and twice the amount of tablet PCs as last year, according to a Walmart spokeswoman.

For the first time ever on a Black Friday, the J.C. Penney store at 651 W. Washington St. in Sequim will join others across the nation in opening at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving, store manager Paul Quinn said.

The store will stay open 25 straight hours from 8 tonight to 9 p.m. Friday, Quinn said, and reopen at 8 a.m. Saturday.

“We’re looking forward to a really busy, busy shopping scene in our store,” he said.

“Our store is going to be loaded with extra help to help everyone find what they’re looking for.”

Next door to J.C. Penney’s at 609 W. Washington St., Brian’s Sporting Goods will open early at 6 am. Friday and offer 25 percent discounts on a number of clothing brands both Friday and Saturday.

On the West End, Dave Gedlund, general manager of Forks Outfitters at 950 S. Forks Ave., said his store will keep its usual hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday but will offer several sales.

Holly Mayshark, assistant manager at the Quimper Mercantile, 1121 Water St., Port Townsend, said the store will keep normal hours of 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, while offering special sales.

Mayshark said her store also will offer “bonce back bucks” until next Thursday, Dec. 5, in which customers will get a $5 gift certificate for the Mercantile for every $50 they spend.

The gift certificates can then be spent starting Dec. 26.

Many Port Townsend stores will have specials during the Merchants Holiday Open House for Small Business Saturday.

At Hadlock Building Supply, 901 Ness’ Corner Road, Port Hadlock, store marketing director Jacklyn Kraut said her store will hold giveaways of about 50 items, such as candles and rolls of Gorilla Tape, from midnight to 7 a.m. on their Facebook page.

The giveaways will include the first person “liking” a specific item, for example, and winning that item, Kraut explained.

Opening at the store’s normal 8 a.m. Friday, Hadlock Building Supply also will offer discounts through the weekend, while supplies last, on Tacoma Firelogs and certain pet products, Kraut said.

“We have a really big pet bed for $10,” she added.

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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.