Michelle Argento doesn’t consider herself particularly organized. But when it comes to Christmas shopping, she’s focused, efficient and disciplined.

How focused? She was done with her holiday shopping in mid-October.

Friday is the official kickoff of the holiday shopping season and this year’s late celebration of Thanksgiving means there will be six fewer days than last year between Black Friday and Christmas.

That fact prompted stores to offer discounts very early. This year, Walmart launched holiday deals Oct. 25, its earliest ever, and Target had a Black Friday preview sale Nov. 8-9. For Argento and early birds like her, the Black Friday kickoff is irrelevant.

For the past five years, Argento, who lives in Bradley, Ill., and has a 4-year-old daughter, has begun her shopping in August and completed it in October. She browses Facebook shopping groups that regularly notify her of sales and discounts on items on her list. One win: an American Girl Doll at one-third of the suggested retail price.

The idea of braving the crowds on Black Friday “sounds like a nightmare,” she said. She plans to spend Friday sleeping.

Retail watchers expect 114.6 million consumers to shop online and in stores on Friday, down 1.5 percent, from last year. It’s still expected to be the busiest shopping day of the long weekend, according to the National Retail Federation, an industry trade group.

On Thanksgiving, 39.6 million people are expected to shop, but that will be overshadowed by Cyber Monday, when 68.7 million people are expected to open their wallets, the trade group said. Holiday retail sales in November and December will rise 3.8 percent to 4.2 percent from last year, to as much as $730.7 billion, the group said.

The last time Black Friday was the biggest shopping day of the year was in 2016, according to Craig Johnson, president of retail consulting firm Customer Growth Partners. “Black Friday does not have the importance it once had,” he said.

Argento, who describes herself as a skilled and thoughtful gift-giver, said she always keeps an eye out for birthday and holiday gifts she can shower on her family, friends and co-workers. She uses a holiday shopping app called Santa’s Bag to help her stick to her budget of $750 to $800.

“Holiday gifting is my time to shine,” she said.

As a result, all that remains on her shopping list are some gifts she plans to make — except for a Nintendo Switch, but it hasn’t been discounted enough for her yet.

But shopping early doesn’t always mean saving more, according to Rod Sides, vice chairman and U.S. retail sector leader at Deloitte, who co-authored the firm’s pre-Thanksgiving shopping survey. “We know that those who start earlier generally spend more,” he said.