For a few weeks there have been some rogue 2012 Black Friday store hours lists circulating around the internet that are unverified. Today Black Friday by Brads Deals has verification that Walmart and Best Buy will be opening at midnight on Black Friday again this year.
Other Black Friday news sources have been reporting store opening hours over the last few weeks but have not been providing any hints of where their information is coming from. We’ve noticed that it’s the exact same list that seems to be going around with store hours suspiciously similar to last year. We did some searching and couldn’t find any stores that had sent out press releases announcing opening times or any times listed on store websites. Today we saw our first hint at store hours from a reputable news source.
For those of you that are just plain unhappy about stores opening at midnight on Black Friday, we wanted to let you know that you are not alone. In fact, 87% of people don’t think stores should be open at all on Thanksgiving. With Walmart opening at 10PM, and Toys R Us opening even earlier at 9PM, shoppers will have to eat an early dinner in order to get in line for their doorbusters.
Many Black Friday Fans are against Midnight store openings.
Some stores are opening at 12AM on Black Friday, also making for an early start to the Black Friday line standing. One store among 12AM openers is Target, who has recently gotten some attention due to an employee-created petition against the store opening its’ doors at 12AM. You can view the petition here.
Target employees are not the only people affected or upset about these store hours. We’ve heard many of you voicing your opinion about the 2011 store hours on our Facebook Wall as well as in our Black Friday poll. If you haven’t told us what you think yet, go check out our poll and leave us a comment below letting us know what YOU think about this year’s store hours.
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Thanks to a blue law from the 17th century, there will be no midnight openings in Massachusetts for Black Friday.
Midnight doorbusters in Massachusetts? 17th century blue laws say no.
Many Massachusetts retailers who had been planning for the midnight openings now are scrambling to decide when they can open legally.
“The blue laws are clear as mud in Massachusetts,” said Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. “We’ve reminded some of the members informally that you have to be careful about the opening. Not only can you not sell on Thanksgiving, but there are also restrictions on labor working then.”
To open at midnight, stores must call in their employees an hour or two early to prepare. However, the nearly 400 year old state law prohibits employees from working until after midnight on Thanksgiving. “The spirit of the law and intent is to give people a day off, and that is why this state has exercised that authority in the way it has,” says Patricia DeAngelis, general counsel for the Massachusetts Department of Labor Standards.
A few major retailers have announced their Black Friday hours for Massachusetts:
There have been a lot of comments on the late night vs. early morning Black Friday sales. Target, Macy’s and Kohl’s are all opening at midnight this year. So after you finish Thanksgiving dinner, you can go shop to your heart’s content! JCPenney and Sears will be keeping the traditional early-morning store hours; opening at 4AM. This has created quite a stir in the comments sections of our Black Friday news page as well as on our Facebook page.
We want to know what YOU think about this Black Friday controversy. Check out what some of your fellow Black Friday Fans are saying and tell us what you think by voting for your favorite quote in the poll below, then leave us a comment to share your thoughts!
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The details of the “major cinematic event” that Best Buy referenced in the announcement of their midnight Black Friday hours were leaked late last night in an interview with Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn posted at TwinCities.com.
Best Buy will show Harry Potter in select parking lots to entertain Black Friday crowds.
Speaking at a Business for Social Responsibility conference, Dunn revealed that select stores will host a viewing of Harry Potter in the parking lot. The comments were not specific about which movie in the series would be shown, though we’re thinking that Deathly Hallows Part 2 is a safe bet given that the DVD’s 11/11 release date would make it a hot item for the holidays. The movie will keep the waiting crowd entertained and should be wrapping up just in time for the doors to open. It marks the first time in memory that a major retailer has hosted an event of this kind to attract Black Friday crowds, and we expect it to tip the scales in Best Buy’s favor when Black Friday shoppers start planning where to begin their shopping day.
We expect more concrete details about Best Buy’s Harry Potter movie event to be announced in the coming days. Since this event is confirmed to be only for select locations, be sure to check with your local store before making your Black Friday movie night plans.
Best Buy announced today that they will open at midnight for Black Friday shoppers. This marks the first time that Best Buy will offer midnight doorbusters and is bound to intensify the increasingly crowded competition amongst major retailers for the midnight Black Friday crowd.
For the first time, Best Buy is offering midnight doorbusters for Black Friday.
“At Best Buy, we’re focused on creating an unparalleled shopping experience for our customers,” said Barry Judge, Best Buy’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “Black Friday is just the beginning. This commitment will come to life throughout the holiday season in a variety of offers and initiatives that give customers great values and the most convenient ways to shop for everyone on their list.”
Best Buy is also upping the ante with the announcement that they will be hosting a “major cinematic event” at 9pm on Black Friday, with further details to be released in the coming days. Other Black Friday initiatives include giving away $25,000 in gift cards via their Facebook page, free shipping through 12/27, and price matching from 11/13 through 12/24 (excluding Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday.)
Shopko Stores announced Thursday that they will join Target, Macy’s and Kohl’s to offer midnight doorbusters to the Black Friday faithful. Shopko also has eight Hometown locations in rural communities that will open at 5am on Black Friday.
Shopko is also the first store to announce Thanksgiving hours for all of its stores nationwide.
“Our customers are telling us that they are pressed for time and want flexible shopping options,” said Paul Jones, Shopko Chairman, President and CEO. “In our larger markets Shopko Stores will deliver greater convenience and value on Black Friday through expanded hours and more Doorbuster items than ever. In our smaller Shopko Hometown markets we will offer the same great value and convenience without the need to travel outside the community.”
Shopko has 147 locations throughout the Midwest, Mountain West and Pacific Northwest.
A complete list of store hours for popular retailers including Shopko can be found on our Black Friday Store Hours page. More retailers are added as Black Friday hours are announced.
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JC Penney is bucking 2011′s midnight doorbuster trend by opening its doors at 4am. Company spokesman Tim Lyons confirmed the news yesterday to the Houston Chronicle. The 4am opening is a familiar spot, as JC Penney opened at 4am in 2010 as well.
JC Penney has confirmed they will open at 4am on Black Friday.
This likely will prove to be a smart move for JC Penney, setting shoppers up for a round of fresh merchandise while retailers like Macy’s, Target and Kohl’s battle it out for the midnight time slot with merchandise well picked over by the time JC Penney opens for business.
Of course, JC Penney’s Black Friday store hours have been added to a growing list of Black Friday retailers on our store hours page.
Store hours and Black Friday ads are being announced daily. Subscribe to Black Friday Email Alerts today to get all of the latest developments emailed to you daily.
We’ve been hearing rumors that Kohl’s will open at midnight for Black Friday this year and today we are pleased to announce that we can officially promote it from rumor to fact. While there has been no official announcement from their corporate headquarters**, we spoke with a customer service representative at a local store who was able to confirm that, yes, it will be a midnight doorbuster.
Kohl’s will open its doors at midnight for Black Friday.
Kohl’s Black Friday hours were previously listed as “rumored” on our Black Friday store hours page. Now that the midnight opening is confirmed, we’ve updated our notes there as well.
Kohl’s opened its doors at 3am in 2010, so moving up the time by a full three hours is an exciting development this year. Macy’s and Target are also both planning midnight openings, creating some rather intense competition between the stores for the die-hard Black Friday midnight crowd.
To stay up to date on the latest Black Friday store hours, ads and more, sign up today for our Black Friday Email Alerts. You’ll get all of the most current Black Friday news, deals and more delivered to your inbox daily.
** 11/1/11 – Kohl’s Corp issued a press release early this morning that confirms the midnight opening, adding that they will be open for 24 hours on Black Friday – from midnight to midnight.
Macy’s has announced their Black Friday store hours. This year, and for the first time ever, they will be opening at MIDNIGHT (12 a.m. Friday, Nov. 25). Not only did their press release announce store hours, but they also gave us a little preview of the kinds of deals you’ll be finding! Some highlights include:
Limited Edition Justin Bieber Fragrance Set
Macy’s will open at midnight for Black Friday.
Cuisinart 7-cup Food Processor for $68.99
KitchenAid Classic Stand Mixer $179.99 (after rebate)
Kids’ Puffer Jackets for $16.99
Macy’s isn’t the first store to announce these hours, Target is planning on opening its’ doors at Midnight and Toys R Us is opening at 10pm on Thanksgiving night.
What do you think about the midnight-opening trend? We’re starting to see it with a few stores- do you think it’s a great idea? Or does it take the fun out of Black Friday shopping? Leave us a comment and let us know!
Click here to view the full Macy’s Black Friday sale-preview list. If you’d like to see all of the Black Friday store hours that have been announced, check out our Store Hours page.
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Other Black Friday news sources have been reporting store opening hours over the last few weeks but have not been providing any hints of where their information is coming from.
We’ve noticed that it’s the exact same list that seems to be going around with store hours suspiciously similar to last year. We did some searching and couldn’t find any stores that had sent out press releases announcing opening times or any times listed on store websites. Today we saw our first hint at store hours from a reputable news source.
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