Thanksgiving shopping crowds 'good not great'; online sales strong

PITTSBURGH/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Retailers across the United States offered early Black Friday discounts to lure bargain-hunters on Thanksgiving eve, but crowds in brick-and-mortar stores were subdued even as online sales jumped. "It's still early, and from what we are seeing so far the crowds are good but not great," said Craig Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners. The rush on the night of the U.S. holiday, a month before Christmas, reflects the new normal in U.S. holiday shopping, whi