As we head into Fall, we know that the Holiday Season is right around the corner. People either love or hate all that is Black Friday shopping. For me, it's something that my Mom & I do every year. We refused to go on Thanksgiving, and lucky for us, nearby Massachusetts is where we shopped & they had local laws prohibiting the malls & major retailers like Walmart from opening on Thanksgiving Day as well. What that meant for us? All the deals on Thanksgiving would be there for us on Black Friday at 4am when they opened.
Over the last few years, I've definitely been taking advantage of online ordering & buying all the major items I wanted online before even stepping foot into the stores. It's just so much easier. But, we'd still go out... even if just to look at the $3 DVDs, it was tradition! But given the current state of events, I'm not so sure I'll be heading out into the crowds for Black Friday this year. Taking a step back, earlier this Summer, some major retailers including Target, Wamart, Kohl's & Best Buy announced that they would not be open on Thanksgiving. That's great! That whole ordeal has gotten way out of hand. Let people spend the day with their families. But now Home Depot has announced that they will be "reinventing" Black Friday.
In short, rather than have a big one day or weekend sale, they will be offering deep sales all season long, starting in early November. Customers will have the option of both shopping in-store or online for these deals, and can even get a sneak peek by downloading the Home Depot mobile app. They're also going to partner with Pinterest on homemade gifts, DIYs & more. Read more about the announcement here.
I think this is a GREAT idea, and I really hope other stores follow suit! I don't mind if they still do a Black Friday sale, but it would be nice to see them offer these deals online only. I don't think we need to encourage gatherings like that. And with them having to limit store capacity, people are just gonna be angrier than normal being told they have to wait outside, or lining up earlier than normal, creating more gatherings. Time will tell what retailers decide to do for the upcoming holiday season.