Holiday Shopping: ’Tis the season to be frugal

(From the economist.com) Thanksgiving Day, which this year falls on Thursday November 24th, is fast approaching and retailers in America are getting ready to lay out their wares in the hope that the annual stampede by shoppers will be bigger and better than ever before. But for some, it will not be. Normally the big day is “Black Friday”, so named because the day after the holiday is when retailers supposedly move into the black and become profitable. Some stores, it seems, cannot wait that long and are going nocturnal. They are rolling out their special offers at midnight on the Thursday or earlier in the evening.

An online petition organized by a disgruntled employee has been raised against the midnight opening by Target, a big retailing chain. It has been signed by over 100,000 people asking Target to reverse its decision. But that is unlikely.

Target is not alone among the large retailers in moving the big shopping day forward. Macy’s, Best Buy and Kohl’s plan to be open at midnight on Thanksgiving. As for the biggest of all, Walmart, most of its stores are open 24 hours. It will, though, make special offers available on toys, home goods and clothing from 10pm on Thanksgiving. And to stop shoppers scampering off to rivals, it will unveil bargains on electronic goods as the clocks strike midnight. It will also post maps on its website and on Facebook to show buyers the location of its most coveted wares.

Read more here: Holiday Shopping: ’Tis the season to be frugal