Giving Thanks For Good Deals

Article by Alexandra Truszkowska

Shoppers+line+up+outside+Macy%E2%80%99s+in+New+York+on+Thanksgiving+Night.%0AImage+Credit%3A+Flickr

Shoppers line up outside Macy’s in New York on Thanksgiving Night. Image Credit: Flickr

From stuffing to mashed potatoes to the classic turkey on the table, this week is known for traditions. But, some are opting against having a common Thanksgiving, instead traveling store to store searching for early Black Friday deals.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are always the next few days after Thanksgiving.  Stores are opening earlier and earlier each year, with tons planning to be open as early as 3 p.m. on Thanksgiving, into the next day.

Sophomore Sarah Shill said, “I think it’s pretty insane stores are open on Thanksgiving. It’s cutting into dinner time so people would rather spend money on presents to give in a month than spend time with their families.”

Still, she plans to be at the Garden State Plaza at 7 a.m.. on Friday. “Technically that’s a good day to shop. I can’t sleep in, but there’s a amazing deals and surprisingly not too many people at the mall.”

Victoria’s Secret is possibly the biggest Thanksgiving offender, opening at midnight on Thursday and closing at midnight.  There are already people planning to camp outside stores like Walmart and Macy’s.

Popular stores for expensive items like big appliances are mostly opening around 6 a.m.on Friday, such as Sears and Big Lots.  Other stores, such as Nordstrom or Best Buy, are opening at 8 a.m. with deals already being promoted online.

To further drag out Black Friday, Target has brought back their “10 Days Of Deals” which was debuted last year.  Executive vice president and chief merchandising officer, Mark Tritton, said on their Target website, “The debut of 10 Days of Deals last year was wildly successful, offering guests significant savings and helping drive Target’s strongest results of the season.”

Even Amazon.com, a leader in Cyber Monday has started their “Black Friday Deals Week” this past Saturday, offering deals all the way from hot tubs to mattress toppers.

Sophomore Allie Korn doesn’t think that stores are being fair to the ancient Thanksgiving traditions. “Thanksgiving is about being thankful for what you have, and Black Friday is all about the things you want. I think that having stores open on Thanksgiving with massive sales takes away from the meaning of the holiday.”

With the way Black Friday is so popular, it seems like there might be a new family tradition in town.