Thanksgiving retail shopping.

lizandmark2014

What are your opinions on stores opening "early" for Black Friday deals, on Thanksgiving?

HisGirlFriday13

I hate it. I think it feeds mass commercialization and over-spending and unrealistic expectations and I think it's one of the worst aspects of American consumerism.

ETA: Fix smarty-pants phone typo.

bethsmiles

Ugh...I hate Black Friday and I hate that it's now spilling over onto Thanksgiving. Shop throughout the year people! There are fantastic deals on more than just one day and you don't have to act like animals to take advantage of them!

WinstonsGirl

I think it's the dumbest thing that we're now getting Black Friday sales.  We don't do Thanksgiving in November people, so the malls just picked a random day up here to kick off Christmas sales (though I know it coincides with US Black Friday).  Seems so pointless here, like it's just a day to get people to spend more.  

smalfrie19

Its ridiculous... There are also plenty of holiday sales before and after Black Friday.....There's a reason they call it BLACK Friday...its spawn of the devil...although I will say, I did go last year, but I was at home in my bed by 12:30..I ran into Khols at midnight and grabbed my heating blanket and ran out. 

misssunshine17

I've never actually gone out on Friday, especially not early, but buy a TV last year on Saturday. It was $200 off, so I took a good chunk of the savings and got tags off the giving tree. Works for me, but I definitely wouldn't go out in the craziness. I think it's absurd to open Thanksgiving night.

climbingsingle

It's totally ridiculous that stores are opening on Thanksgiving and it makes me really angry. 

KeptInStitches

UO: I love Black Friday. I love the crowds, I love the deals, I love the shopping, I love crashing afterwards.

I hate that stores are opening on Thanksgiving. I'm still going to go out, but I'm not going anywhere before Friday starts, you know?

cruffino

I think it's pretty terrible. The deals aren't more amazing than you can find online and I hate crowds. But most of all, I think it sucks hard that people in retail have to spend the holidays working so others can buy plastic crap.

When did holidays become mostly about shopping?

arrippa

One of the good things about living in MA is that the state's blue laws prohibit the stores from opening on Thanksgiving. I think they have to wait until midnight the earliest to open but I think most stores are aiming at 3:00 am - 4:00 am on Friday.

southernbelle0915

It sucks. I feel like it breaks the holiday "pact" that retailers should have - keeping employees and consumers out of the consumer world for just one day. 

It's just getting earlier and earlier. There were "pre-Black Friday" sales this weekend and "beat the rush sales" the weekend before. It makes the biggest shopping day of the year lose its appeal, IMHO. 

pittiemama14

I've never been out on black friday. I would rather spend the extra 20 dollars on whatever I'm buying than deal with all that crazy. I did however work black friday 6 years in a row, and one year we had a lady fighting over a toy break her arm, and a kid get seperated from his mom and the mom didnt even bother coming up to get him after we paged her (he was old enough to know her full name). After he sat at the service desk with me for about 25 mins, we called the police because we didn't know if she was even still in the store, and it was only after they showed up that she felt like she should stop shopping and come get him.

tmclawchick

I think it's disgusting and just sad.

clarke10

As someone who worked retail and customer service for many years, I think its awful. It's already hard enough for people in those jobs to get off work on days like Thanksgiving and Christmas. When you start the mass sales and shopping on Thanksgiving day, all the sales people have to be working instead of home with their families. 

chibiyui

I'm working the Thanksgiving shift this year. I volunteered cause it's double time since it's 7 pm to 12 this year. I've worked some of them in the past as well, my store has been doing Thanksgiving day for about 5 years now. 

The worst part about the Thanksgiving shift is you inevitably get that one self-absorbed asshole whose all "Oh, it's a shame you have to work today" while he's buying shit. 

I don't mind Black Friday, I just wish it would stay to midnight openings. One year my parents and I got up at like 5 am, went to AC Moore to get candy melts (Mom and I make lots of truffles during the holidays) had breakfast, went to another store to get a tv and entertainment stand and were home by like, 9 -10. It was a lot of fun. I don't get the trampling people craziness though. 

WonderRed

It's absolutely ridiculous.   We are a country of over the top, selfish materialism and it just makes me sick how we are bombarded with spend spend spend, more more more all the time. There is nothing anyone in my family needs so badly that I need to leave our family celebration to stand in line for 5 hours to buy it for them. I've always thought black Friday was ridiculous and this just make the whole debacle worse.

KeptInStitches

@chibiyui - I agree. Especially on the Black Friday staying to midnight openings or later part.

My love language is gifts, so I love the holiday season - I get an iron-clad excuse to buy presents for my favorite people in the world! But it wouldn't be fair of me to do that at the expense of depriving other people from time with their friends and families on holidays (especially Thanksgiving). Does that make more sense?

climbingsingle

mmm4763

I think opening up on Thanksgiving is absolutely ridiculous and I applaud the stores and companies who are committed to remaining closed that day so that employees can spend time with their families. My mom works in the retail sector and she has to go in at 7:30pm on Thanksgiving and it makes me sad. (Actually she has to work 7:30pm-2:00am and THEN 4:00am-11:00am...talk about WTF but it's b/c the area she is responsible for is very niche and they have to have management there---pretty much everyone is having to pull doubles. SUCKS)

NavyBlue143

I love Black Friday, but refuse to shop on Thanksgiving day. I do not understand how you can be so desperate to save 30 bucks that you're willing to trample or mace somebody. That's disgusting. I'll just wait until after Christmas when that gadget goes on sale to make room for the newer model. Nobody needs stuff that badly. I usually buy clothes, coats, and sheets on Black Friday. The stuff nobody is trampling to get.

doeydo

It's fine with me  as some people would be celebrating Thanksgiving with their family on a different day and perhaps the stores might not be so crowded and insane because there is more time to shop during Black Friday. Though, the country I'm in, Canada, celebrates Thanksgiving in October.  Also, I don't go out shopping when stores in my country that do do Black Friday sales for fear of getting trampled or attacked by some crazy.  I love Cyber Monday, though.

jlazgrl

There was a post on FB (can't find it now) that I think put it perfectly. It said something to the effect of "Only in America will people trample each other for sales exactly one day after being thankful for what they already have".

jlazgrl

Ugh... found it but the photo wont show up.

FutureMrsN3312

alisonmarie658 said:

I'm a huge fan of online shopping on Black Friday/Cyber Monday instead. No risk of being trampled to death!

This is soooo me.  I much rather sit at my desk and order things.  It actually gives me something to do at work on Black Friday.

FutureMrsN3312

ugh stupid double post...

Sorry!!

photokitty

I'm not a fan. But on the flip side many grocery stores have been open until noon-ish on Thanksgiving for years - and many would say Hallelujah! And when I was a server at country club Thanksgiving was my favorite day to work. So I think it's a little naive to assume the retailers that are taking up the trend are the devil :-p

MairePoppy

KeptInStitches said:

UO: I love Black Friday. I love the crowds, I love the deals, I love the shopping, I love crashing afterwards.

I hate that stores are opening on Thanksgiving. I'm still going to go out, but I'm not going anywhere before Friday starts, you know?

Same here. I always go out shopping on Black Friday and Christmas Eve, not with the intention of buying anything. But I just enjoy the crowds, noise and displays. 

I won't go near a store on Thanksgiving, not even a grocery store. I know from experience that employees are pressured to work on holidays and I don't want to feed into that. Also, I love Thanksgiving and want to fully enjoy it before I start my serious shopping.

AddieCake

Hate it.

ElcaB

I loathe it. I have no problem with Black Friday when it's actually on Friday. If going out at 4 a.m. makes you happy, that's your deal. But this whole opening on Thanksgiving business is ridiculous. 

Thanksgiving is a family holiday. If you're the type of person who leaves the dinner table early to get a good deal, it's not just your problem --- it's the problem of all the employees who have to leave their families to service you. And, while I completely understand that it's the employee's choice to work at Target or any other retailer, working on a holiday sure isn't something they should have to do to keep a job. 

I used to be a cocktail waitress at a bar that was open 365 days a year. I remember the Thanksgiving I got stuck working the evening shift. I had to leave my family's Thanksgiving at 4:00 to work, and it was so depressing. 

MobKaz

WonderRed said:

It's absolutely ridiculous.   We are a country of over the top, selfish materialism and it just makes me sick how we are bombarded with spend spend spend, more more more all the time. There is nothing anyone in my family needs so badly that I need to leave our family celebration to stand in line for 5 hours to buy it for them. I've always thought black Friday was ridiculous and this just make the whole debacle worse.

This is exactly my sentiment.  I have never once shopped on Black Friday.  

I host Thanksgiving dinner.  There is nothing in my home that says "Christmas" until the day after Thanksgiving.  I spend that Friday reinventing my home decor from Fall to Christmas.  The day is all about music, warm beverages, and comfy clothes.

I confess I used to be the crazy person that would get up at the crack of dawn December 26 to shop Christmas clearance.   But that was "back in the day" when nothing Christmas oriented went on any discount prior to Christmas.  

climbingsingle

When I was little (back in the 80s) my mom would always take us shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving. She'd give us each $20 and let us buy presents for each other. The stores were never that crazy. There were no door busters or insane deals or people being trampled. It was just a regular shopping day that maybe saw a little more traffic because most people had the day off. 

However, I do remember parents punching each other for the last Cabbage Patch dolls like right before Christmas :-P