Photo by Sherri Kolade
Mohamed Assaf (left), 19, of Dearborn, and his friend Hassan Khalaf, 22, of Dearborn, wait outside Best Buy Nov. 21 for Black Friday deals.
By SHERRI KOLADE
Times-Herald Newspapers
ALLEN PARK — Nine friends driven by bargains waited for six days to buy electronic gadgets in time for Black Friday deals at Best Buy, 3349 Fairlane Drive.
But Dearborn L.A. Bistro Manager and Owner Souheil Johair is paying some of his staff to shop for new televisions for his restaurant.
“This only comes once a year and we save about $1,000 and it is worth it,” Johair said Nov. 21.
Johair said he paid one of his chefs, Ali “Smiley” Bazzy, to buy some televisions.
“It is worth it because we are paying Smiley a little bit extra on the side,” Johair said. “So whatever he is shopping for will be free for him and it is a day off for him too.”
Mohamed Assaf, 19, of Dearborn, said people who see him and his friends waiting in line smile and wish them good luck, others don’t mince words, he said.
“My mom calls me a moron,” Assaf said with a smile.
Assaf said his friends and family members take shifts waiting in line and go home to eat and shower. But waiting in line still takes its toll, he said.
“I feel like crap,” Assaf said.
His friend, Hassan Khalaf, 22, of Dearborn, said last year he purchased a $200 television set that normally would have cost $800.
“This year we want to buy 40-inch televisions that will cost $180,” Khalaf said. “I will feel awesome after getting that television.”
Best Buy’s Black Friday hours were from midnight Thursday to midnight Friday.
(Sherri Kolade can be reached at [email protected])