Every checkout line open, it’s a sign the holiday shopping season is in full swing. People from all over the Miami Valley lined up for hours, and sometimes days, waiting for the Black Friday deals to go into effect late Thursday and into Friday morning.

The cheers were loud as store workers at Best Buy, 131 Mall Woods Dr., opened its doors to shoppers at 12 a.m. Friday.

Aaron Cooper waited outside the Best Buy, 131 Mall Woods Dr., since Tuesday. On his list were two televisions, a 40-inch and 26-inch HDTV. Cooper said he was successful with his purchases, which are for his own personal use.

The line of shoppers that wrapped around the store well into the evening hours filed in targeting the deals they had been planning to purchase for quite some time.

“I’ve strategically planned this for weeks, and I’m ready,” said Michael Daley, from Carlisle, who had been waiting outside the electronics retailer since late afternoon Thanksgiving. “I got here at about five o’clock hoping to get some good deals,” Daley said. “Unfortunately not getting what I expected, but there’s some other stuff I’ll hopefully get.”

Daley said he was planning on picking up a Sony Playstation 3 bundle, a camera and some other miscellaneous items.

Other stores across the area opened well before midnight. Wal-Mart and Target both opened late on Thanksgiving night. Lines at Target near the Dayton Mall were similar to Best Buy, with shoppers wrapped around the business.

Lyndsey Schneider, store manager of the Dayton Mall Target, said the location had about 300 shoppers in line late Thursday night and the line continued to grow as 9 p.m., the store’s opening time, approached.

“Lots of excitement. Everyone’s ready to get in and buy,” Schneider said.

Schneider said the store saw a similar amount of people in line last year. This year’s big ticket item at Target was a 50-inch HDTV flat screen, Schneider said.

Target assisted shoppers waiting in line by passing out maps and snacks to help make the Black Friday experience a smooth one.

Stay with News Center 7 and the Dayton Daily News for the latest on Black Friday shopping.