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Black Friday: H&M in San Francisco at 8:30 a.m.

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Holiday shoppers decked out in gloves, knit caps and scarves shuffled up and down Powell Street in San Francisco, near Union Square, hunting for bargains.

At the H&M store, remixes of holiday Christmas classics pumped through the stereo system, accompanied by the occasional squeal and click-clack of clothes hangers as bargain hunters flipped through racks of $12.95 slim-fit shirts and $39.95 skinny jeans.

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Staff members in front of the store handed out fliers for 25% off any item purchased Friday.

Attracted by that discount, painter Sean McKee, 28, dropped in on the way to work. He stood at the entrance, a hefty white shopping bag in one hand, a Chihuahua named Lola in the other.

Battling for small-size clothes was “horrible” but worth the bargain, he said.

“Every year, I love to shop. I like high-end clothes. I like the hustle and bustle of it all,” said Elkhalid McCree, 29, of Vacaville. “You have to have a hustler’s mentality being up at midnight to start shopping for clothes.”

Standing in a line that snaked through rows of women’s sweaters at the H&M, McCree held a knit sweater and cap combination he had picked out for his girlfriend.

He was already hours into his shopping spree, having started at midnight at the Polo outlet in his hometown, where he bought slippers, pajamas, jeans, “everything I could find that I liked.” He then hit Gucci and planned to visit Macy’s and his favorite store, Louis Vuitton.

This all before 8:50 a.m., when he had to start work as a medical assistant.

He’s worked up to three jobs at once -- also juggling duties as a bartender and a vending machine business owner -- in order to splurge during the holiday season.

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‘The economy has shown you have to put up your money early and first,’ he said.

-- Alejandro Lazo in San Francisco

Photos: Black Friday shopping

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