Black Friday may be getting all the attention as the holiday shopping season closes in, but a recent ShopperTrak study indicates that the annual discount-laden retail spree may not be the ideal time to shop. Rather, with smaller crowds, the weekdays immediately following “Black Weekend” are expected to be some of the best days to hit stores this year, according to the study.

ShopperTrak, a shopper analytics provider, has identified the 10 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas likely to have the least amount of in-store holiday shopper traffic, making them the best days to shop for consumers looking to do their shopping in a less frenzied environment.

“There’s a reason Black Friday and the Saturday before Christmas attract the heaviest crowds—retailers flood consumers with discounts and special offers on those days,” said ShopperTrak founder and Executive Vice President Bill Martin. “But quieter shopping days also present their fair share of deals for consumers, along with more attentive customer service and a leisurely shopping experience.”

ShopperTrak predicts that Wednesday, Dec. 4, will be the best day to shop this holiday season with the least amount of store shopper traffic. Three other days that same week—Dec. 2 (Monday), Dec. 3 (Tuesday) and Dec. 6 (Friday)—also garnered top spots as some of the best days to shop this year.

Given those days’ proximity to Black Friday, a good selection of merchandise likely will remain in the stores for retailers working to capture those sales.

With four weekends between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year—compared to five in 2012—consumers will have fewer weekend days to complete their holiday shopping. The weekdays in between will see stores with relatively fewer crowds and more attentive sales staff offering shoppers an opportunity to complete some of their holiday shopping without competing with crowds.

“Consumers are often more alert to sales and promotions than if they shopped on chaotic weekend days,” said Martin. “Retailers can use traffic-benchmarking reports and real-time analytics to better prepare their store and staff to seize selling opportunities on these slower-traffic days and turn browsers into buyers.”

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