Long Island shoppers hit the stores early to take advantage of Black Friday deals.

Some stores reopened after special Thanksgiving hours, and others opened their doors for special sales for the first time this morning.

Many bargain hunters made their way to the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City for Black Friday deals. The mall opened at 6 a.m.

Some stores had markdowns of up to 50 percent off. Other stores offered "buy three, get one free" deals.

While there was a mad rush at the mall, experts say that shopping for deals has turned into a monthlong event they have dubbed Black November.

"The stores have gotten smart," says Marshal Cohen, chief retail analyst of the NPD Group. "They recognize that the playing field has changed, they're competing with everybody. Everybody has the same items. There aren't a lot of new, hot items, so everybody is selling the same product. So the stores have figured out what they have to do is, it's not about who has it for less, it's who has it for less earlier to try to entice the consumer. So what you are seeing is a full month of deals that are going to continue into the holiday and past it."

The Roosevelt Field mall is open until 10 p.m.