Trade centers and stores, particularly fashion boutiques, in Ho Chi Minh City, were packed with customers as the Black Friday shopping spree began, even though it was raining from the early evening.

Many shopping venues that offered discounts of up to 60-70 percent were crowded from early in the morning until night fell.

Discount signs are everywhere.

Shortly after its opening time in the morning, the Vincom Plaza in District 1 was packed with a sea of customers and the number of discount-hunting shoppers kept rising as the day went on.

Numerous booths at the trade center were packed up with hundreds of people at some points.

A crowd of people is seen waiting in front of a shop.

Footwear and handbag shops also attracted a great amount of customers, even though they were a little less crowded than clothing stores.

Nguyen Thi Hai, 76, is trying a pair of shoes.

A perfume boutique at Vincom Plaza did not have to wait until the afternoon to announce, to the disappointment of shoppers, that all products were out of stock in the morning alone.

Besides shopping malls, regular shops and stores also managed to attract large crowds of shoppers with discounts up to 50 percent.

However, not many customers were able to find their items of interest among a sea of discounted products.

Thanh Hong, a resident in Phu Nhuan District, said that she finally decided to get a pair of jeans of a well-known brand for 50 percent discount although the size was not perfectly fit.

“There is only one left, and I did not want to regret for not buying it,” she said.

Minh, a customer from Binh Thanh District, stated that most of the discounted items were old models and they did not have many sizes available, so it was hard to find a suitable one.

In the evening, the number of customers, most of whom are young shoppers, flocking to shopping centers and stores increased significantly.

Customers swarm a handbag store.

Nguyen Thi Thanh, a resident in District 1, said that she had worked the entire day and only had the evening hours to do her shopping. She finally got an H&M shirt for half price.

“I bought a few clothing items for myself and also for my family for the Christmas holidays,” a shopper named Le Van Hai said.

As of 10:00 pm, many shopping malls were still packed with customers.

Originated in the U.S., Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day, the fourth Thursday of November.

During this day, most retailers, stores, and shops open early and offer great promotions on their items.

A fitting room of a shop is full of waiting customers.

Ly Tu Trong Street in District 1 is full of people even after 10:00 pm.