As sales ring, hands wring

The official start to the busy holiday shopping period is typically a day when merchants offer extended hours and jaw-dropping sales to lure consumers. But this season is especially critical for merchants whose revenues have dropped sharply during a deep recession, and how they fare may serve as a bellwether for the health of the nation’s economy, which depends heavily on consumer spending.

Lisa Buondonno, who was shopping at Best Buy in Dedham yesterday, usually spends nearly $2,000 on holiday gifts, but she said she’s trying to cut that in half because of concerns with the economy. She is hunting more for bargains, being more selective, and paying only with cash to avoid credit card debt.

“I really am, though, trying to save wherever I can,’’ said the Dedham resident, who bought presents for her sons yesterday, including Xbox video games marked down from $59.99 to $34.99 and an Insignia digital camera for $50, normally $100. “We’ve told the kids we’re just not spending as much this year.’’

Yesterday many retailers were reporting stronger numbers of holiday shoppers than last year. At Macy’s, shopper traffic appeared to be higher than a year ago, said chief executive Terry Lundgren. Best Buy Inc., the biggest consumer electronics chain, said it had bigger early-morning crowds around the country than last year; more than 1,000 people had lined up at the electronics store in Dedham by 5 a.m. yesterday, about 300 more than last year, according to general manager Howard Davenport. And Kmart also had stronger numbers than last season, said spokesman Tom Aiello, who pointed out that the retailer’s $9.99 sale on the Snuggie was “doing gangbusters.’’

“Today was a good start, particularly over last year. There were great crowds for doorbuster deals. But people in general were looking at lower priced gifts,’’ said Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. “I don’t think anybody is expecting consumers to open up and spend more than last year. If they at least hold the line - and combine that with reduced costs by retailers - it will be a decent season.’’

But even the most optimistic projections forecast a ho-hum holiday shopping season. The Retailers Association of Massachusetts is estimating a 3 percent drop in retail sales in the state during November and December compared with last season’s sales, which fell 7 percent from the year before. The National Retail Federation is predicting a 1 percent drop in holiday sales across the country, following a 3.4 percent drop in 2008.

Another dismal holiday season would be bad news for merchants, who have cut inventory, made do with fewer holiday workers, and offered discounts earlier in the season to draw in jittery consumers as credit remains tight and the unemployment rate creeps up.

Lots of consumers were looking for huge bargains yesterday. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer, drew crowds with $298 Hewlett-Packard laptop computers and other specials that went on sale at 5 a.m., and the laptops got snapped up at the Framingham location in a hurry: Svetlana and Jim Dezel showed up at 3:15 a.m. to get one, but “there were already 500 people in line,’’ said Svetlana.

At Legacy Place in Dedham, the start was slow: It was empty when most of the shopping center’s stores opened at 8 a.m.; L.L. Bean, which opened at 7 a.m., didn’t have anyone lined up for its sales. But Brian Sciera, a vice president at WS Development, said parking lots at Legacy Place were full in the evening and his tenants were reporting sales above expectations.

By noon, car traffic at the CambridgeSide Galleria was up about 7 percent over last year, said Jennifer Rotigliano, senior marketing director at the mall, and the stores were consistently busy. “I think people were leisurely shopping as opposed to running in and out,’’ she said.

The 18 Simon malls in New England, including the South Shore Plaza, North Shore Plaza, and Burlington Mall, were also seeing more customers, said spokeswoman Laurel Sibert. “The retailers are very happy with sales so far today,’’ she said.

Still, the economy was weighing on shoppers’ minds yesterday throughout the Boston area, which is no surprise to merchants and retail analysts. New Englanders are projected to spend on average about $445 on gifts this season, down 17 percent from last year, a slightly bigger drop than the national average, according to a Deloitte LLP survey of nearly 11,000 consumers across the country.

David Restrepo, 19, of East Boston said that he might give his friends something small, like candy, if he gives them anything at all. And the Starbucks gift cards that Tommy Darcy, 29, a banquet waiter from South Boston, keeps on hand to give to co-workers and cousins may be out the window. The economy may be seeing signs of life lately, but Darcy said his spending habits aren’t: “I don’t feel any increased confidence.’’

Even as Ann Limare, 32, filled out a Best Buy credit card application at the CambridgeSide Galleria early yesterday, she lamented that her mortgage payments have skyrocketed, her phones have been turned off, and her children will probably have to make do with less this Christmas. Limare, a certified nursing assistant who is married to a cab driver, said she was shopping yesterday to replace her broken television set. “I don’t feel good at all,’’ said.

Globe correspondents Sean Teehan and John Guilfoil contributed to this report. Material from Bloomberg News was included in this report.