My wife always goes Black Friday Shopping. She's not out right now thankfully. But she will be early tomorrow morning. probably around 3:00 AM. (That's why she's asleep right now). She and our three daughters will shop until they drop -- or at least until the stores kick them out.
I fear we are trending towards Black Friday becoming Black Thursday. Seeing those JC Penny's commercials has made me decide not to shop there (I do a little black friday shopping as well -- but I wait until I get up much later). And I mean 'ever again' not just Black Friday.
Being open for business on TG and Christmas is wrong. For years my grandfather was an administer for a place that was open for business 24/7. We kept telling him what he was doing was wrong. He must have had 100's of workers whose families were impacted by having to work these hours on the holidays. I guess we finally reached him. He closed shop one thanksgiving and let every one off. He was fired the next day and we never saw him at thanksgiving dinner ever again. Guess closing the emergency room wasn't such a good idea after all.
Quote:I do understand what you say, but you can't just move Christmas to December 24th.
I will go on record to say, Black Friday will prevail in the end (imo). I simply can't envision Thanksgiving night becoming a replacement for Black Friday. It seems like a failure waiting to happen.
Happy Thanksgiving, FBT. 
Where have you been? It pretty much already started to replaced it...more places are opening tonight than did last year, and even more will open up early next year.
Quote:I do understand what you say, but you can't just move Christmas to December 24th.
I will go on record to say, Black Friday will prevail in the end (imo). I simply can't envision Thanksgiving night becoming a replacement for Black Friday. It seems like a failure waiting to happen.
Happy Thanksgiving, FBT.
I'm married to a retail GM who is asleep because she has to work at 1 am.
She hates this time of year, but understands this is where the year is made or lost. They're expecting a dismal shopping season this year, and retailers are slashing prices and extending hours. It sucks, but as the big boys have started to move into Thanksgiving day with their sales, everyone else has followed suit. Even the local malls opened at 8 tonight because the big box anchors were all running sales. If they open, so does the rest of the mall. It's only a matter of time before these same retailers decide Christmas and Easter are no longer sacred days either. Some have already started that trend.
Happy Thanksgiving to you too!
I love it. Didn't go to the store this yr tho. Did it all online. I'm a tv show buff so I cleaned up. Shows that were from $30 and up come down to $20 and down. Also coped GTA5 for 34.
It sucks and I definitely do not agree with Thanksgiving Day Shopping but the reality is that the whole thing would not exist if there was no demand.
Companies are just giving the consumer what they want.
Quote:It sucks and I definitely do not agree with Thanksgiving Day Shopping but the reality is that the whole thing would not exist if there was no demand.
Companies are just giving the consumer what they want.
If no one went to the stores...the stores wouldn't continue to open.
Quote:If no one went to the stores...the stores wouldn't continue to open.
That's exactly my point. The stores are open because there is a demand, people are there shopping.
That is just pure capitalism, we can't have it both ways.
Anyways, I never go to the actual store for anything. I don't care if I miss out on some deal that is to be had at the store itself.
Thankfully (see what I did there?) I don't need anything.
Yesterday, online, I was able to buy a Nikon D7000 and a $600 lens in a bundle for $800. So I saved ~$700. Worth staying on the internet for 30 minutes.
Hell No.. Ya'll can have that Black Friday trash.. I'm not gettin killed over a damn tv by idiots. Cyber Monday I can deal with but i don't fight over materialistic goods. That's nonsense..
I agree with Winger and the others, I wouldn't go out no matter what. Actually, I don't anyway, the only time I go to the mall is for Registry of Motor Vehicles business b/c it is, unfortunately, located there. For Christmas, we take/plan a trip and don't waste money on gifts.
How long before it is Black Wednesday Night?
My first thought in reading this thread was of a parallel to NFL greed in that the prices continue to rise (for us, same price as last year with one less game, that's a 10% increase, depending on how you want to spin it) and the product gets less attractive as TV timeouts and rules changes have had a major impact. I had a hard time maintaining the similarity other than the overriding point of greed blunting enjoyment.
I'm addicted, like you, to the NFL so I won't go anywhere; the shoppers are addicted to Black Friday, even if it becomes Black Wednesday/Thursday.
I long for the days when Sundays, never mind Holidays, were truly special- quiet, no traffic, Sunday dinner then maybe a family activity. Now, like Sammy, I just start drinking about 10AM.
I have an 'appointment' on Black Friday with three other guys on the first tee at Palencia at 10:50. I don't think there will be any good sales though.
I'm sickened by the whole spectacle, and ignore as much of it as possible.
I did it once, about three years ago, to get some kind of deal on a TV at Target and to get an X-Box 360 bundle for a good deal. Last year, I walked into Wal-mart, spent five minutes there, and walked right on out. Went home, waited for Cyber Monday andTuesday, and did all of my shopping that way after I got home from work. It's a lot easier, and the waiting time on the shipping and receiving guarantees that you will have whatever you need in time to wrap up for Christmas.
Cyber Monday > Black Friday
Let me wait in a painfully long line to get something that is already gone.
Quote:I did it once, about three years ago, to get some kind of deal on a TV at Target and to get an X-Box 360 bundle for a good deal. Last year, I walked into Wal-mart, spent five minutes there, and walked right on out. Went home, waited for Cyber Monday andTuesday, and did all of my shopping that way after I got home from work. It's a lot easier, and the waiting time on the shipping and receiving guarantees that you will have whatever you need in time to wrap up for Christmas.
I think the only effective way to counter this stupidity is for retailers to expand their online specials. Hopefully enough to where opening on Thursday night wouldn't be as popular or profitable. I'm not holding my breath, though.
Quote:I think the only effective way to counter this stupidity is for retailers to expand their online specials. Hopefully enough to where opening on Thursday night wouldn't be as popular or profitable. I'm not holding my breath, though.
On cyber Monday you usually buy what you are looking for and not much else. When they get a body into the store they know that they will get extra sales out of it.
Quote:On cyber Monday you usually buy what you are looking for and not much else. When they get a body into the store they know that they will get extra sales out of it.
Yeah, you're right. The only thing I can do is not participate in the stupidity. For instance, there was a Black Thursday write up in the T-U this morning and it talked about one woman and her daughter who ate Thanksgiving dinner while waiting in line for Toys R Us to open up. She has no idea what a fool she looks like. (sigh) Oh well, it's today's new America.
My poor daughter worked all night until 6:00, came home and got a couple hours of snooze time and then had to be at her other job by 10:00. She's dragging, but I LAUGHED. Because BACK IN MY DAY, we worked 24 hours a day, in four feet of snow...year round!
I went out last night. Yeah, I worked at a movie theater during my college years, and movie theaters never close. I'm not really sympathetic to retail people but neither do I treat them less than human as some people do.
.gif "Laughing")
No way man, I'll pay the extra money.