Black Friday 2011

[SoonerTexan]

So who is planning on shopping?

Wal-Mart, Target, and Best Buy are all opening at midnight this year (10 pm for Wal-Mart, actually, I think). At first that seemed nice--we always liked to go to Target right at 6am when it opened, get a few things, and go home, but 5:30 wake up calls were painful. So midnight seemed easier.

Then DH pointed out that in order to get the TV he wants at Best Buy he and my brothers are going to have to line up IN THE AFTERNOON ON THANKSGIVING. That is not cool with me. The go every year and used to leave at 11pm and get back around 5am...no skin off my back. I'm not sure how them missing 1/2 the holiday will go over this year.

I wish retailers would just stick to 5 or 6 am. Give the employees and crazy shoppers a chance to take the post-turkey nap at least! I sort of hope sales are down slightly and they don't pull this crap next year.

[Thirteen]

I avoid retail like the plague on that day. *shudder*

I'm afraid of my obit saying something like, "Beloved wife and mother, trampled to death at Wal-Mart..."


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[MrsK]

I'm all about Cyber Monday.

[HouseofWool]

My mom really wants to go out, but the thought of it gives me hives.

[scarlett09]

I don't go anywhere near retail on Black Friday, Thanksgiving weekend or any weekend leading up to Christmas if I can help it. I've worked in retail during these times and that was enough torture to last me forever.

I wonder how much this is going to screw up our Thanksgiving plans - my dad is a higher up for a national retailer. In previous years, he always went to bed very early on T-Day and was at his store-for-the-day at 3 or 4AM. If the stores are opening that early, I'm willing to bet that he's going to have pass on dessert to get to his store-of-the-day. Ridiculous.

[diggitydot]

I haven't seen any ads for anything I really need to get, so I'm probably going to stay home.

[SuzySunshine]

Before working for the mall I NEVER went to the BF sales. While working at the mall my mom thought it was HILARIOUS that I HAD to be there at 4:30am a few years. Now that I do not work in the mall again you couldn't PAY me enough to be there.

If I were shopping I would think the midnight was better then 4 or 5am however not if I had to spend half my holiday waiting in line.

[peggyfromwastate]

I'd gladly pay an extra 100$ on a big ticket item to not be standing outside for hours and then stressing about how many there are, etc etc. not to mention customer service issues.

We don't do black Friday. But I do way too much cyber shopping. Gonna try to cut that out this year!!

[lovelight]

I can't stand black Friday shopping. I went once about 10 years ago and vowed to never go again. I'm so proud of myself that this year I am actually done with my Christmas shopping already! First time in history!!

[corn poffi]

I used to do black Friday every year. I never bought anything. A lot of the stuff they put on sale is actually inferior product (things made just to sell "on sale"). I prefer Cyber Monday. Or I shop local on Black Friday. They don't have the crazy sales that make me skeptical.

[spotty_dog]

I celebrate Buy Nothing Day, and this year, I'm eager to do my part for Small Business Saturday! Also thinking of getting behind the sentiment that some of my FB friends have espoused -- if a business opens unusually early on Black Friday, I might just forgo shopping with them until the end of the year. Give the employees a freakin' break, man.

I go nowhere near any retailers on Black Friday. I worked too many of those to even think its worthwhile.

[ladymoreta]

I usually do an overnight shopping trip with my mom, aunt, and sister, but I'm not going this year since I don't want to be that far away from DH and my hospital in case I go into labor early. Plus, I'm not exactly up for two days of shopping right now...

I also hate that they keep opening stores earlier and earlier. It's just a rotten thing to do to the employees, and most shoppers want to spend Thanksgiving with their families, too.

[diggitydot]

I'm doing Small Business Saturday, too. We have a ton of small business/local retailers here that I'd rather support.

Our city's downtown association sponsors local small businesses during the holidays by giving them storefronts rent-free downtown for the holiday season in hopes that they'll like it so much that they'll want to sign a long-term lease. Kind of a "try-it-before-you-buy-it" program. The properties are all on major streets near popular restaurants and businesses, so they should be pretty lucrative locations.

[Vanquisher]

I always have a tactical military operation planned for black Friday. It was what has allowed us to get amazing deals on stuff we've needed and gifts for family for a decade. Computers, $5 video games for nieces and nephews, toys, phones, iPod docks, and last year we got a new washer and dryer. I've saved thousands. They aren't always Christmas gifts. I remember that about 6 years ago we needed a new computer really, really bad. We got one on dell.com for like 60% off that we were able to build out to our specs. It was a $3200 computer we got for $1400 bucks. I used it to work from home and make money, and DH used it for the minutes he was home to look at labs and x-rays. It was invaluable. Fewer stores allow you to get their really great deals online now, but it's great if you can So, it's extremely worth it to me and well worth my time. I will definitely stand in line for 4 hours to get my kid something pretty special we couldn't have otherwise afforded. I do it every year, and I'm not stopping anytime soon. We may have more money now, but it's still worth it to me to save hundreds of bucks. That's money in my pocket and I have plenty of debt to put it toward.