TYLER, Texas (KETK) - With back-to-school around the corner and hot deals on the table, stores are gearing up for the tax-free weekend in East Texas.

"They're buying their back-to-school supplies, apparel and footwear," Tyler Academy Store Director Randy Smiley said. "It's just a fun day for us here at Academy."

Academy is one hot spot for Tyler shoppers, Smiley said Friday started pretty slow, but as soon as it hit lunchtime, hundreds of shoppers began entering their stores. He expects even more people to come through their doors this weekend.

At Broadway Square Mall in Tyler, several businesses said they picked up just as much traffic on the first day of the tax-free weekend as well.

"We are seeing about, I must say, roughly about 600 customers a day," Journey's District Training Man

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