Deals and Duds in the Search for Black Friday Savings

The National Retail Federation says it expects 137.4 million people to go shopping during the Thanksgiving holiday, with Black Friday the weekend’s busiest day.

Macy’s stores nationwide will open at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving, an hour earlier than previous year. Obviously people had missed out on their Thanksgiving time just to shop during the period of extreme discounts.

One of Governor’s Square’s main, longtime anchors, Belk will open at 4 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. Walmart added that it would be broader than what shoppers will find in nearby outlets, with a number of bigger screens and pricier models at steep discount.

One could only imagine the scene at this regularly packed mall on a designated shopping frenzy event such as Black Friday.

Walmart and Target will open their doors at 6 p.m. Thanksgiving Day, with online deals starting at 12 a.m. EST. It takes away from family time for the employees. Instead of the desired outcome of more sales because of more shopping days, studies show shopping activities are just redistributed and being open can cost more than sales can earn. Argos, the most print-based retailer around, is also getting on board with the online discounts – and, possibly in an effort to steal a march on the big boys, it’s doing so early, joining the ranks of stores that have rolled out their discounts ahead of November 25th.

For some that wasn’t early enough.

Stephen Lebovitz, CEO of CBL, said the decision to close on Thanksgiving Day was two-fold.

T.J. Maxx (Ming Avenue): Open 8 a.m.to 11 p.m.

Costco, Barnes and Noble, and Lowe’s will also be closed for Thanksgiving. Furthermore, a zonal approach to online commerce helps retailers build trust with their worldwide customers.

“Retailers are even advertising in their Black Friday ads that the deals are available online on Thanksgiving”, Vincent said.

Many shoppers surveyed at The Shops at Ithaca Mall opposed Thanksgiving openings, reflecting a growing sentiment among shoppers nationwide.

Many retailers have viewed being open on Thanksgiving as a “necessary evil”, he said.

Last year, shoppers parted with $10 billion on Black Friday alone. That’s up from 58.7% past year, indicating that the holiday weekend next week remains extremely crucial for retail companies.

Miller says she’s also focusing on bringing out customers for an enjoyable holiday shopping experience on their special day: Small Business Saturday. The electronics and appliance chain P.C. Richard & Son, for example, ran an ad last Thursday in the Inquirer attacking stores that stay open on Thanksgiving as “un-American” and “anti-family”. “Everybody’s already having great deals”. Some stores already started pre-Black Friday sales on November 1. Some stores have different policies or restocking fees for Black Friday purchases and knowing these can prevent shopper’s remorse. “Service that is nonessential should be done for the day”.

It’s been hard to get a handle on this year’s holiday trend because there is no holiday trend.