Black Friday

[wowie]

No, not the Steely Dan song. :)

Before I head into the kitchen for the rest of the day (ha!)

Here's a couple of sites that list various sales and store openings

http://bfads.net/

http://tgiblackfriday.com/

and from Wiki for whomever is going to ask what the heck Black Friday is...

Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving in the United States, where it is the beginning of the traditional Christmas shopping season. Since Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States, Black Friday may be as early as the 23rd and as late as the 29th day of November. Black Friday is not an official holiday, but many employers give the day off, allowing consumers to get a head start on their Christmas shopping. Retailers often decorate for the Christmas season weeks beforehand. Many retailers open very early (typically 5 A.M.) and offer doorbuster deals and loss leaders to draw people to their stores. Although Black Friday, as the first shopping day after Thanksgiving, has served as the unofficial beginning of the Christmas season at least since the start of the modern Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1924, the term "Black Friday" has been traced back only to the 1970s. "Black Friday" was originally so named because of the heavy traffic on that day, although most contemporary uses of the term refer instead to it as the beginning of the period in which retailers are in the black (i.e., turning a profit).

The news media frequently refer to Black Friday as the busiest retail shopping day of the year, but this is not always accurate. While it has been one of the busiest days in terms of customer traffic,^[1][2] in terms of actual sales volume, from 1993 through 2001 Black Friday was usually the fifth to tenth busiest day.^[3] In 2002 and 2004, however, Black Friday ranked second place.^[4] The busiest retail shopping day of the year in the United States (in terms of both sales and customer traffic) usually has been the Saturday before Christmas.^[5] In 2003 and 2005, however, Black Friday actually did reach first place.^[6]

In some cities it's not uncommon to see shoppers lined up hours before stores with big sales open. Once inside the stores shoppers often rush and grab, as many stores have only a few of the big draw items. Electronics and popular toys are often the most sought after items and may be sharply discounted. Because of the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, many choose to stay home and avoid the hectic shopping experience. The local media often will cover the event, mentioning how early the shoppers began lining up at various stores and providing video of the shoppers standing in line and later leaving with their purchased items. Traditionally Black Friday sales were intended for those shopping for Christmas gifts. For some particularly popular items, some shop these sales in order to get deep discounts on items they can then resell, typically online.

Comments

[pusspower.livejournal.com]

There were already people lined up outside our local Best Buy at 8 PM, even though it is not set to open until 4 AM!

[wwowie.livejournal.com]

They're nuts!

[urgayleswoman.livejournal.com]

My Target Icon

[fomocobaby.livejournal.com]

Luckily, it's too cold here for anything but very foolish people to camp outside stores. Evolution in action!
;)

[wwowie.livejournal.com]

There were folks at work who'd stopped places bright (well rather dark actually) and early. Total nuts.

[wyepeep.livejournal.com]

Years and years ago I swore NEVER to shop on 'black Friday', and I don't! I do however, pick out one day before Christmas and do ALL my shopping. I call it my 'shop til I drop' day. Works pretty well for me. Usually do it about the 2nd week of December.

[wwowie.livejournal.com]

That makes more sense. Not as many people around.

[waennovien.livejournal.com]

I went to Target today, expecting to see massive discounts - most disappointing, to be honest. Not worth the trip, except for some long sleeve tshirts I got.