Day After Thanksgiving

The day after Thanksgiving or Black Friday is popular for the shopping gobble that drives many shoppers into fuzziness. The mad rush to the door busters in the wee hours may or may not give a good deal to customers but sends the businesses from red to black.

This year businesses and retailers decided to offer sales on thanksgiving night itself. Stores opening at 9pm and 10pm kept shoppers running around for deals and bargains. Further, the stores planned their timings such that the shoppers could line up at the stores one after other.

Kmart and Walgreens opened stores on Thanksgiving itself. Walmart and Toys r us opened at 10 pm and 9 pm. Next, Best Buy, Kohls, and Target opened their stores at midnight. The deals and long queues made the shoppers spend night in these stores itself. Last, JCPenney, Sears, Gamestop and other retailers open at 4 am in the morning so that the shoppers could continue shopping. (phew…)

The shoppers were confused and got in to the trap and spent heavily on Black Friday. Some of the door busters on Electronics such as televisions and Xbox were good in deed. Toys and basic clothing were on sale for considerable difference. Many new board games and kitchen gadgets were on sale offering mail in rebates.  Price matching and comparing continued before and after door busters where shoppers could buy online.

Mostly customers end up buying beyond their shopping lists and Christmas shopping. People who were jobless or about to lose their jobs did not even refrain from shopping. The credit cards and some websites got down due to the sudden surge and could not operate.

Finally, shoppers end with huge debts and retailers in huge profits. The returns and exchanges were expected as customers want to get best out of the deals. No wonder the sales this year have surpassed last year’s. 🙂

Annual Holiday Events

Do not miss the annual holiday parade, festival of trees, and lighting on the commons this weekend. Quad city is gearing up for the holiday season with the annual events. Before the Thanksgiving celebration and Black Friday shopping, it is time for the annual celebrations.

  1. Holiday Parade – The parade in Davenport will  feature local businesses and organizations with colorful platoons. Helium balloons, dance shows will entertain the local people in downtown Davenport at 11 am.
  2. Festival of Trees – Festival of trees will feature different Christmas trees decorated and fun events for all ages.
  3. Lighting on the Commons – The annual lighting on the commons at the John Deere Pavilion will feature festivities, wagon rides, cookies, hot chocolate, music, and of course fire works. The event is from 3.30 pm to 8pm and is free to general public.

As Thanksgiving approaches businesses are attracting shoppers with numerous discounts and coupons even before Black Friday. To avoid long queues most stores are offering online sales during the special timings.

The annual events in Quad cities will kickoff the holiday season despite the weakening economy. 🙂

 

 

 

Cyber Monday surpasses Black Friday Sales

We have seen a heavy sales of over 45 billion on Black Friday but the Cyber Monday is about to surpass the store sales. Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Leapfrog, Meritline, and other stores offer heavy Cyber Monday deals for online shoppers.

Black Friday

Black Friday door busters resulted in heavy shopping in all the local stores. JCPenney and Kohls had clothing for half prices. Bedding, Apparel, Kitchen items and other house hold items for on sale. Toys r us had select toys for reduced price. I must say that the Toys R Us stores did not expect the huge crowd for their first time door buster sales. The staff were unprepared and unequipped causing heavy delays in billing.


KMart advertised the popular black diamond ear rings but not enough stock for the demand. Best buy saw huge sales with shoppers lining up early Thursday night itself. Sony and Toshiba laptops were the big tickets. Popular DVDs and Blue rays were at reduced prices and are ideal for holiday gifts. Sams club and Sears saw a huge sales in electronic appliances, where as Walmart was popular for clothing and toys. Gamestop had one video game free for every two.

Cyber Monday

The Monday after Thanksgiving also known as Cyber Monday is well known for the huge discounts by websites for online shoppers. Free shipping and heavy discounts are rained on customers and the deals are claimed within minutes!

Most of the deals start at  midnight on Sunday. Walmart has cyber week going on and Best Buy has started Cyber Monday deals today itself. Amazon posted the deals on its website. All the retailers participate in the Cyber Monday deals and offer discounts to the shoppers. Shoppers can order online and pick up the goods at a nearby store or get it at their doorstep for free shipping.

Christmas gifts for family, friends, and colleagues are the most sought items along with the electronic gadgets during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It does not matter if you retain the item or return it, buying and boosting the economy is important. Let me know what you bought this year. 🙂

Black Friday or Thanksgiving: What are you buying?

Have you made up your mind on what to buy this Thanksgiving or on the day after? The pressure builds as the date arrives and the count down has already begun with some stores offering exclusive online deals much ahead. Hurry up and grab the deals before it is too late. But, do not buy unnecessary stuff just because it is cheap.

Black Friday

The annual tradition of ‘Thanksgiving’ has arrived and families have already begun preparations for the dinner and travel plans. For most families, the day after Thanksgiving or the Black Friday plays a crucial role. It is the day of the year when stores rain discounts, offers, and deals which can never be found during the regular days. Most stores promote holiday shopping and offer goods at reduced prices during certain hours on the day after Thanksgiving. Often, some of the deals are extended to online shopping or also known as ‘Cyber-Monday’.


The mad rush, long queues, lack of parking spaces, midnight shopping, and heavy shopping are worth on some goods which we desperately need and are available at reduced prices on the Black Friday. You can even find shoppers lined up on the Thanksgiving day evening itself to claim the goods as soon as the doors of the stores open.

Stores

So, how do we go about claiming these deals when entire community population is hovering around the stores. It is better to check the previews of the deals online. The stores announce their deals on their websites or through local paper advertisements. Shoppers can get a preview of the deals of what is the price of the item you are looking. Let’s look at the different local stores and their Black Friday deals.

  1. Walmart has given the store layout in its ad, so that shoppers can reach the exact point of the item. The stores open at five in the Friday morning, so you may start standing in the queue right from the day before. 🙂 The toys and video games can be bought starting midnight 12 am itself.
  2. Bestbuy opens the door at five on Friday morning and you can find great deals on electronic items. You can buy online this Thursday itself instead of waiting in the midnight queues. Some of the deals are good through Thursday to Saturday.
  3. Sears opens the doors at seven am on Friday morning till noon. Sears has different offers on all the three days, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
  4. Kohls opens at three on Friday morning. You can create a list and shop all day on Thursday itself.  Kohls is also popular for its cash back offer!
  5. JCPenney opens the store at four on Friday morning up to one in the noon. The store’s sneak peek reveals the deals the store is going to offer.
  6. Kmart opens at five on Friday till eleven in the morning. You can shop online on Thursday itself and some deals are good on Thursday and Saturday too.
  7. Target opens at four on Friday morning and has posted the Black Friday deals. The sale is extended up to Saturday apart from the exclusive online deals.

Menards, Toysrus, Blair’s farm and fleet, Hyvee, JewelOscoSams and all the local stores have posted their ads.

Choice

The Wii bundle is $197 at Best buy and Sams, but Walmart is pricing $250 along with the Balance board. Board games start at $3 on Walmart and $5 on Kmart. Sears is offering diamond jewelery at reduced prices such as the diamond pendant from $78. JCPenney and Kohls have apparel at reduced prices for everybody.

Most stores have online deals coupled with free shipping and site to store picking to avoid the rush on the Black Friday. You can find many Black Friday deals on Slickdeals, Dealsplus, Amazon, ebay, and Blackfriday.

If you have a group of friends, it is better to share the stores and buy a planned item. Remember that long queues are inevitable and it might take hours before you get in the store. Do not get disappointed if you do not find the planned item when you reach the store.

Whether it is a kitchen item, toys, apparel, electronics, gifts, or a long planned gadget, the main goal is to be safe and happy during the annual Thanksgiving and Black Friday. 🙂 Let me know your best deal.

Why wait for Black Friday, great deals are here through out November.

On Black Friday, the day after Thanks giving, stores rain special discounts, offers, coupons, and deals for consumers. Electronic items and other seasonal items are offered at a reduced price so that shoppers can enjoy the benefits.


This year the stores are boosting up offers and alluring cosumers through early ‘Black November’ offers. While Sears has special reduced prices on this Friday and Saturday, Walmart is offering discounts this Saturday and Sunday. Younkers, Macy’s, Burlington coats, and other stores are offering up to 75 per cent discounts.

If you are planning to buy any item during Thanksgiving, it is the right time to start looking now. You may find a better deal before Thanksgiving. Online discounts are also pushing up to boost consumer sales.


Adobe

Due to the high unemployment rate and recession, how far the stores can convince customers to spend? Let’s wait and see. 🙂