‘Not as Exciting': Black Friday Deals Arrive Earlier Than Ever
What was traditionally a single day of shopping already stretches over the weekend and now retailers are trying to extend the extravaganza even further by discounting goods long before the holiday
By Noreen O'Donnell ••
Chef Fitz Tallon from Eataly NYC shows you how to carve a turkey.
Black Friday is becoming a month-long deal.
Amazon's sales began Nov. 20 and continue through Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving and what was once the start of the holiday shopping season. Target and Walmart are offering holiday discounts throughout the month, while Best Buy is holding "pre-Black Friday" weekends.
What was traditionally a single day of shopping already stretches over the weekend and now retailers are trying to extend the extravaganza even further by discounting goods long before the holiday. What that will mean to Black Friday sales is something analysts will be watching for.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A woman takes a break from shopping on Black Friday at Dadeland Mall, Friday, Nov. 25, 2011, in Miami. Early signs point to bigger crowds at the nation's malls and stores as retailers like Macy's and Target opened their doors at midnight.
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The first shoppers wait outside for the doors to open at 6 pm EST at Macy's Inc. store ahead of Black Friday in New York, U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 27, 2014. An estimated 140 million U.S. shoppers will hit stores and the Web this weekend in search of post-Thanksgiving discounts, kicking off what retailers predict will be the best holiday season in three years.
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A crowd of slightly over 30 waits in line for store to open Thursday, November 27, 2014 at Best Buy in Aurora, Colorado. Black Friday started earlier that usual this year with many shoppers flocking to stores that are now opening around 5pm on Thanksgiving Day.
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A customer holds a handful of gift receipts after paying for items at a Target Corp. store ahead of Black Friday in Mentor, Ohio, U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 27, 2014. An estimated 140 million U.S. shoppers will hit stores and the Web this weekend in search of post-Thanksgiving discounts, kicking off what retailers predict will be the best holiday season in three years.
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Shoppers wait outside a Target Corp. store ahead of Black Friday in Mentor, Ohio, U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 27, 2014. An estimated 140 million U.S. shoppers will hit stores and the Web this weekend in search of post-Thanksgiving discounts, kicking off what retailers predict will be the best holiday season in three years.
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A man gets arrested in Walmart during Black Friday shopping. Nothing quite kicks off the holiday season like a pair of handcuffs and a face full of linoleum.
AP Images for Kmart
Stephanie Torres, of Chicago, stocks up on Barbie dolls during Kmart's Thanksgiving Day doorbuster sale at the Addison St. Store, on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2013 in Chicago, Ill. Kmart was the first major retailer to open it's doors for pre-Black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving Day at 6am.
One woman apparently used a stun gun on another after an all-out brawl inside of the Franklin Mills Mall in Northeast Philadelphia.
NBC Los Angeles reported a Friday Brawl at a SoCal Walmart that left a police officer injured and two people in custody. In New Jersey, a man was pepper sprayed by authorities after he became "belligerent" while arguing with a Wal-Mart shopper over a television Thursday night.
AP Images for Kmart
Luis Torres and his daughter Stephanie, from Chicago, search for more deals after picking up a 50 inch television during the doorbuster sales at Kmart's Addison St. store on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2013 in Chicago, Ill. Kmart was the first major retailer to open it's doors for pre-Black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving Day at 6am.
AP Images for Kmart
Arty Corona, with Beavers Coffee and Donuts, hands out free coffee for early morning shoppers provided by Kmart as they celebrate the launch of the lease-to-own program at their Addison St. store Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2013 in Chicago, Ill. Kmart was the first major retailer to open it's doors for pre-Black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving Day at 6am.
AP
A shopper who declined to give his name waits outside a Kmart store for it to open on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2013, in Anaheim, Calif. Instead of waiting for Black Friday, which is typically the year's biggest shopping day, more than a dozen major retailers are opening on Thanksgiving day this year.
AP Images for Kmart
Rosa Rodriguez, of Chicago, picks up a tablet and a laptop during the doorbuster deals at the Kmart store on Addison St., on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2013 in Chicago, Ill. Rodriguez arrived at 1:30am for the first deals of the season as Kmart was the first major retailer to open it's doors for pre-Black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving Day at 6am.
AP
Shoppers wait outside a Kmart store for it to open on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2013, in Anaheim, Calif. Instead of waiting for Black Friday, which is typically the year's biggest shopping day, more than a dozen major retailers are opening on Thanksgiving day this year.
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Lauren Arnold reads a book in her tent as she lines ups with others outside a Best Buy store in Laurel, Maryland, on Nov. 25, 2010 for "Black Friday" shopping. "Black Friday" marks the start of the US holiday shopping season.
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Shoppers wait in line while shopping at Toys"R"Us in Fort Worth, TX.
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A Lifeguard model stands outside the front door of a Hollister Co. clothing store, entertaining consumers as they line up on the early morning hours Friday, Nov. 23, 2012 at the Glendale Galleria mall in Glendale, California.
Bloomberg
Black Friday shoppers duck under the opening door of a Sears store at Simon Property Group Inc.'s Great Lakes Mall in Mentor, Ohio, U.S., on Friday, Nov. 25, 2011.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A woman takes a break from shopping on Black Friday at Dadeland Mall, Friday, Nov. 25, 2011, in Miami. Early signs point to bigger crowds at the nation's malls and stores as retailers like Macy's and Target opened their doors at midnight.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A crowd of cold shoppers waited by the front doors at the Target store in Lisbon, Conn. for the queue to file-in as the store opens for Black Friday shopping at midnight Friday, Nov. 25, 2011.
AP
Black Friday shopper Dean Leon curls up in a shopping cart as he waits in line outside a Target in Mechanicsburg, Pa., early Friday morning.
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A worker waits to open the before a Kmart opens on Thanksgiving night November 22, 2012 in Griffith, Indiana. Many stores got a head start on the traditional Black Friday sales by opening on Thanksgiving.
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Shoppers rush through the doors at a Macy's Inc. store in New York, U.S., on Friday, Nov. 23, 2012. Discount store shoppers are prepared to wait in long lines on Black Friday, though they are skeptical about whether they'll get the best deals of the season.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Shoppers take advantage of Black Friday sales in the early morning at a Target store Friday, Nov. 26, 2010, in Chicago.
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Shoppers camp outside of a Best Buy store in the hopes of getting in on the Black Friday deals.
AP
Black Friday holiday shopper Greg Inman waits in a checkout line with other shoppers at Toys R Us in Camp Hill, Pa., early Friday morning.
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Shoppers line up for a Black Friday sale at a Toys "R" Us Inc. store in Mentor, Ohio, U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 24, 2011. At a time when the U.S. was faced with 9 percent unemployment, retailers poured on the discounts to attract consumers grappling with economic struggles.
An Amazon warehouse is packed with packages ready to be shipped for the Black Friday rush. Online Black Friday shopping has become increasingly popular over the years as people avoid having to get off the couch and out into the department store chaos.
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Black Friday is important to merchants because it kicks off the holiday shopping season, a time when they can make 25 to 40 percent of their annual revenue. Here, bargain hunters shop for discounted merchandise at Macy's in New York City.
AP
About 600 shoppers lined up at a Little Rock, Ark., Old Navy early Friday.
"It remains to be seen how significant the event itself is," said Traci Gregorski, vice president of marketing at the retail research firm Market Track.
Tis the season for holiday sales and strategies for capturing shoppers dollars.
Black Friday spending was down last year, the second drop in a row, according to the National Retail Federation. Spending though the weekend in stores and online dropped 11 percent from $57.4 billion in 2013 to $50.9 billion last year. The decline is partly the result of the earlier bargains, leaving Black Friday with less of a punch.
This year, the Credit Union National Association and the Consumer Federal of America are expecting a 3 percent growth in spending, down from an earlier prediction of up to 3.5 percent. The new prediction is based on a recent survey.
Store Name
Thanksgiving Hours
Black Friday Hours
Best Buy
5 p.m.-1 a.m.
8 a.m.-Close
Kmart
6 a.m. - Midnight (The following day)
Macy's
6 p.m.-10 p.m (The following day)
Sears
6 p.m.-2 a.m.
5 a.m.-10 p.m.
Big Lots
7 a.m.-Midnight
6 a.m.-11 p.m.
Barneys New York
Closed
10 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Bloomingdale's
Closed
7 a.m.-10 p.m.
T.J. Maxx
Closed
7 a.m.-10 p.m.
Dillard's
Closed
8 a.m.-10 p.m.
Saks Fifth Avenue
Closed
8 a.m.-9 p.m.
REI
Closed
Closed
Home Depot
Closed
Regular Hours
Marshalls
Closed
7 a.m.-10 p.m.
Neiman Marcus
Closed
8 a.m. -Close
Walmart
24 hours
24 hours
But for all the debate over store hours -- and at one end is Kmart, open on Thanksgiving morning at 6 a.m., and at the other REI, the outdoor gear supplier that will stay closed on Black Friday itself -- for shoppers the season means deals. They are scouting for the best prices before ever stepping inside a store, Gregorski said. They are driving competition among retailers who know their potential customers are online comparing ads.
“They do have a lot of information at their disposal, much more than they’ve ever had in the past,” she said.
On Friday, Tanya Jackson, a hair stylist from New Jersey, will be on the hunt for a washing machine and dryer at Home Depot where she expects to save $800.
“Oh yes, I already checked,” said Jackson, 42, who lives in Orange and who was making her way through New York City's Herald Square on a recent weekday morning. She is prepared to pay about $2,800.
Thanksgiving Day hours continue to court controversy, with some shoppers vowing to stay home and labor and other groups protesting the disruption to workers' holiday.
Kendall Castillo, 19, a New York City college student, will not be shopping on Black Friday.
"l'm always with my family," said Kendall Castillo, a 19-year-old student studying theater and fine arts in college in New York City. Even the lure of good deals will not interrupt his holiday.
And Naysika Oree, a health-care consultant from the Bronx, has never shopped on Black Friday, turned off by the crowds and reports of unruly shoppers. She will stay home this year too.
"I'd rather just spend the couple of extra dollars then have to go through the madness," she said.
Naysika Oree, a Medicaid consultant in New York City, steers clear of Black Friday shopping because of the unruly crowds
This year, the federation's preliminary Thanksgiving Weekend Survey found that an estimated 135.8 millions shoppers, or 58.7 percent of those surveyed, said they might head to the stores at some point over the weekend. The findings were similar to the year before, when 133.7 million holiday shoppers were in stores and online over the weekend.
Black Friday is expected to be the biggest shopping day for all age groups, but young adults in particular find Cyber Monday appealing, according to the survey's results. Among 18- to 24-year-olds, 88.7 percent said yes or maybe when asked if they would should online on Monday. Among 25- to 34-year-old, the number was 90.9 percent.
Kate Winchester, a 23-year-old college student in New York City from Pennsylvania, will among those shopping online. She needs a new vacuum cleaner and a heavy blanket.
Noreen O'Donnell
College student Kate Winchester will shop online this holiday season to avoid crowds and lines
"You don't have to wait in the lines," she said.
Plus now that stores open on Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday is "not as exciting anymore," she said. "No one wants to go out on Thursday."
To draw shoppers back into the stores, in the hopes that they will spend more money there, some retailers are offering special holiday events, Gregorski said. Wal-Mart for example is making the game Battlefront available to try out before its official launch.
"They’re introducing that experiential element into their promotions and events," she said. "It gives people a reason to come in."
As for what's hot this year, anything related to "Star Wars," game consoles and wearable technology, such as headphones and fitness trackers, she said. Drones are another top item.
Hoverboards, on the other hand, are not proving to be as popular as expected, likely because of their price, she said.
Milly Mladjenovic says that the chance she will shop on Black Friday is 100 percent. "I always do it," she says
Other trends to watch for: exclusive partnerships between manufacturers and retailers and bundled offers, televisions and game consoles for example, which can make it difficult to determine how good a deal it is.
Milly Mladjenovic, 21, said she would definitely be out on Black Friday, shopping for work clothes and Christmas gifts.
"What am I not looking for?" she said.
The college student in New York City said deals could be found, but she thought bargains were better in years past.
