Ahh, Black Friday. The biggest shopping day of the year is almost upon us. Waiting in lines for early store openings, making a mad dash to the next store on your list, saving big on all your holiday shopping – it’s a bargain hunter’s dream. If you’re a big Black Friday shopper, you’re probably already itching to get your shopping plan all scheduled out and ready to go, right? Unfortunately, most stores haven’t revealed their hours yet, which can really put a damper on your planning.
Stores started opening earlier and earlier beginning in the mid-aughts. Normal Black Friday opening times of 9 or 10 a.m. moved back to 6, then 5, then 4, and before we knew it, Black Friday had taken over Thanksgiving, with people standing in line for midnight store openings. From there, of course, the only place to go was Thanksgiving Day itself. While opening on Thanksgiving Day has been a controversial move for the stores that have adopted it, it’s certainly been profitable. There are people who think stores should not be open on holidays so their employees can spend time with their families, and there are also consumers who think it’s unfair that they have to give up part of their holiday if they want to get a good deal.
Whatever side you’re on, sometimes amazing deals win out, so in case you will be shopping on Black Friday, these are our predictions for 2015 Black Friday hours for some of the more popular stores. Though it’s obviously too early to know most of these for sure, since stores are keeping mum about their plans, we can speculate. These predictions are based on prior years’ Black Friday schedules plus any new information regarding 2015 that may have leaked through any venue. In our predictions, we’ll be erring on the side of last year’s times, but keep in mind that there has been quite a bit of backlash in the past few years, which has led some retailers away from the earlier and earlier times, so we could definitely see some surprises in the way of stores opening later than in the past.
Unfortunately, Staples is pretty much the only major retailer who’s confirmed an opening time so far. Though they were open on Thanksgiving the past two years, they’ve decided to be closed for Thanksgiving Day this year and open at 6 a.m. on Black Friday. This is part of that larger trend of moving away from Thanksgiving Day hours. According to NBC News, Costco, Nordstrom, Lowe’s, Bed, Bath and Beyond and more stayed closed on Thanksgiving Day in 2014.
Keep in mind that these times are not confirmed by the stores, and they are simply predictions based on previous years, current trends and good old-fashioned rumors. And look, we’re not trying to reinvent the wheel here. Unless we’ve heard otherwise, we’re assuming most stores will probably stay the same as last year, because that tends to be the case. These times can change – and you should expect a few curveballs from retailers who decide to take a stand against what’s lovingly referred to as the “Christmas creep.”
These are stores that have been opening on Thanksgiving Day for the past few years and don’t show any signs of stopping, organized by time.
These stores either haven’t gotten into the Thanksgiving day madness yet, or have actively removed themselves from it, like some did last year. Again, they’re organized by predicted opening time.
A few tips to keep in mind while you’re planning – many retailers are trying to shift the focus to online sales, as profit margins are at their best online, and many of their stores just can’t handle the extra bodies Black Friday brings in. These online sales are often exactly the same as the in-store ones, and there’s sometimes free shipping and guaranteed delivery before Christmas. If you’re the kind of person who would rather stay home than fight the crowds anyway, buying online might be the best way to go.
Of course, don’t let that discourage you from visiting the stores. It’s the biggest shopping day of the year for a reason, and taking part in Black Friday shopping is even a tradition in some families at this point! So be sure to check out the ads once we’re a little closer to the holiday so you can work out your actual schedule, and make sure you schedule out some time for a good meal with your family and/or friends. It is the happiest time of the year, after all!
