COLUMBIA (WACH) -- Lots of shoppers pulled all-nighters looking for deals on the traditional Black Friday.

"Everybody was pushing and people [were] yelling and getting mad." said shopper Ashley Kennerly who was in line at Belk in Harbison before doors opened there midnight Friday morning. "I was like [disturbed], and that's when I ran and I got the boots for my mom."

Many stores opened at midnight or earlier, and shoppers like Ashley Kennerly and Dashanel Govan said they didn't have time for sleep, going straight to the mall Thanksgiving night.

"I would describe it very tiring, because I woke up very early," said Govan.

Many of these people spent up to 19 hours shopping, missing sleep, but they said it was worth taking full advantage of some of the best deals of the year.

"The boots at Belk -- they were supposed to be $90, but they were on sale for $20," said Kennerly. "That's a really good deal."

For store employees like Ben Graham, Turkey Day was cut short to open doors and wrangle shoppers.

"I had a really good Thanksgiving, came home at about 9 p.m., took like a little cat nap, woke up, came right to work," said Graham.

While many people spend Black Friday buying gifts, for some, it's just about taking advantage of deals on items they need -- saving holiday prep for another time.

"I think I'll do my Christmas shopping probably the second week of December," said Govan.

Black Friday is a big business day for stores, but procrastinators outnumber early-birds, making the Saturday before Christmas often the busiest shopping day of the year.