BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (WCCO) – The snowy and windy wintry weather didn’t stop local shoppers from heading to the Mall of America Thursday night in preparation for Black Friday.

It’s the busiest holiday shopping day of the year, and it definitely looked like it at the biggest mall in the country. The doors opened at the Mall of America at midnight Thursday with as many as 30,000 people waiting to check off items on their gift list.

Mall of America could break a single-day attendance record if the traffic keeps up on Black Friday. Dan Jasper with the Mall of America said there were some long lines when people first got into stores at midnight, but shoppers got in quickly and were very orderly. He said shoppers are enjoying themselves and getting into the holiday spirit.

Mall of America officials said late Friday morning they are anticipating a shopper turnout of about 10 percent more than last year’s 219,000 that set a single-day record. Officials said they credit that to the building being able to handle a large number of people at once and pre-publishing the midnight store opening to help shoppers plan their attack.

Jasper said the mall started planning for Black Friday, in terms of how to handle the large crowds, more than a year ago. He said there are extra security, maintenance workers and event promoters on hand at the Mall of America all day to help people get to where they want to go.

If you’re looking to get some work done on your home, keep an eye out for Matt Muenster with HGTV’s Bath Crashers, who will be at the mall from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. American Idol winner Phillip Phillips will also be at the mall to perform for shoppers in the patio inside Nickelodeon Universe at 1 p.m.

HGTV’s Bath Crashers Hit Mall Of America