IT’S Black Friday, but there has been no repeat of the chaos seen when the American-inspired retail event first reached the UK several years ago.

The car park at Bournemouth’s Castlepoint was quiet at 8am, with shoppers spreading their purchases over several days.

However, it picked up in the afternoon, as final preparations for the Christmas light switch on at the shopping park took place.

Some shoppers said the car park was at a standstill, with traffic really heavy throughout the area.

David Pickett, centre manager at Castlepoint Shopping Park, said: “As with last year, a lot of the brands at Castlepoint Shopping Park are spreading their discounts across a full week, rather than just one day – for example Argos have got deals over two weeks and in Monsoon they have 25 per cent off all dresses, 25 per cent off all cold weather clothing from Friday November 24 to Monday 27.

“With this in mind, we’re seeing a healthy flow of customers visiting Castlepoint across the whole Black Friday period, rather than just a spike on the day itself.”

Poole's Dolphin Shopping Centre had at least 15 stores offering Black Friday discounts.

Centre manager John Grinnell said: “The centre is really thriving today and it’s great to see so many shoppers out making the most of the reductions and offers on Black Friday. This day is widely considered to mark the start of the Christmas shopping season, which has created a really vibrant atmosphere at the centre. It is much busier than previous Black Fridays due to more top retailers getting involved with the discounts, including Ernest Jones, Beales and Yankee Candle.

“There are still plenty of car parking spaces available for shoppers so we hope to see lots more visitors today.”

Clyde Ponting, store manager at Next in Poole, said: “This is the first year that Next has participated in Black Friday and I’m sure it won’t be the last. Sales have been promising thanks to 70 per cent discounts on all Black Friday items and we are on for having one of our best Christmas shopping days sales so far this year."

A spokesperson from the Perfume Shop at the Dolphin Centre said: “We’ve been so busy, the footfall is definitely up on last year, as well as takings. We have had amazing offers running all week and have sold out of a number of product lines. Our internet has also been so busy that the site has crashed on a number of occasions.”

A spokesperson from Animal said: “It’s been much better than last year. Footfall and taking for us are definitely up based on previous Black Fridays.”

JD Sports in the Dolphin Centre: “It’s our first few weeks in the centre and it is better than expected. More brands have been added this year which has helped increase the footfall and takings for us.”

River Island said: “Footfall is higher this Black Friday and with JD opening opposite, this has helped. They are expecting a very busy weekend.”

This weekend is predicted to be the biggest ever for shopping in the UK. Consumers are expected to spend almost £8billion on deals over the next four days.

A number of chains, such as John Lewis, Game, Tesco and Argos, have extended their high street opening hours. But many retailers, including Marks and Spencer and Ikea, are opting out.

In 2014, Black Friday sparked chaotic scenes locally, with shoppers turning out in the early hours to stake their place in queues.