When will Target open on Black Friday?
Target is opening its doors at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving for the fifth year in a row and will keep its doors open to its regular closing time Friday Target is one of the retailers that has decided to open its doors early, although great deals are still being offered at Target on Black Friday. It is one of many that will keep its doors open for over 24 hours for the weekend sale.
The discount retailer will kick off the Black Friday shopping madness on Turkey Day, like many other retailers. Target’s opening time, like Macy’s is no earlier than the preceding years for the first time in five years. Walmart, which gets 55 percent of its revenue from grocery sales, has always been open on Thanksgiving afternoon but starts its Black Friday deals later in the day. Many people begin to line up for the items they want when the retailer open its doors.
Black Friday a day early
Target, which was the subject on an online petition in 2011 pleading it not to open on midnight that year, first opened on Thanksgiving in 2012 at 9 p.m. A year later, they pushed their opening time up an hour to 8 p.m. For the past two years, the retailer opened at 6 p.m. Other competing retailers also moved up their opening business hours during that time.
The early openings gained mixed results for many stores. In many cases, the move simply shifted the timing of sales rather than increasing them. More customers were leaving their Thanksgiving meals and heading to the stores early.
A consumer might want to escape the hassles of socializing right after the Thanksgiving feast, but most people still have to endure the afternoon meal. Earlier starts will likely deliver an unproductive effect for many stores, however, there are still thousands of people that will head out early for sales. Fortune 500 reported, an ICSC survey found only 12 percent of shoppers even want to go to stores on Thanksgiving.
“Six p.m. continues to be the right opening time for us,” Target Chief Stores Officer Tina Tyler said. “It felt good to us last year to be able to allow those family traditions to take place around Thanksgiving, but also let shopping be part of it.”
This won’t likely be the last year Target will open its doors on Thanksgiving Day either. By opening earlier, many retailers are able to be more organized and there are less deaths from people being trampled by crowds when the stores open earlier.
Black Friday sales can get people riled up, so opening 12 hours earlier than they used to, retailers feel they have more control over the crowds that turn out for the day-after-Thanksgiving deals.
Photo: Mike Mozart
Alexa Mason is the blogger behind Single Moms Income, a personal finance freelance writer, and an online entrepreneur. Come hang out with her on Facebook and Pinterest.
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