Thanksgiving Day opening times — a sampler platter
6 a.m.: Kmart
5 p.m.: JCPenney, Toys R Us
6 p.m.: Kohl’s, Macy’s, Sears, Walmart, Bon-Ton (Elder-Beerman), Best Buy
Source: BlackFriday.com
THANKSGIVING DAY EDITION
Be sure to pick up a copy of our Thanksgiving Day edition, our largest paper of the year that is packed with the coupons, special deals and our salute to local unsung heroes. The day after, follow our Black Friday coverage at daytondailynews.com.
Thanksgiving poses a dilemma for retailers: They can join the wave of stores that are opening on Thanksgiving Day, and face an angry backlash from a vocal bloc of shoppers. Or they can stay closed and watch their competitors’ cash registers sing at the onset of retail’s most pivotal season.
The trend is clear. More stores are joining the Thanksgiving Day bandwagon, and they’re opening earlier in the day, or in some cases, staying open later. The traditional barrier between the Thanksgiving holiday and the unofficial launch of the holiday shopping season on Black Friday is a thing of the past.
This year, retail giants Macy’s, Kohl’s, Walmart, Sears and Bon-Ton (Elder-Beerman’s parent company) have announced plans to open at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day, most moving their start times up from last year. JCPenney — which two years ago proudly proclaimed it wouldn’t open on Thanksgiving Day — one-upped the competitors by announcing a 5 p.m. Thursday opening, and Toys R Us followed suit. Then Kmart made an even bolder leap by announcing its stores would open at 6 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning and stay open for 42 straight hours. Some retailers have not yet announced their Thanksgiving/Black Friday schedule.
There is still a handful of retailers that buck the trend and stay closed on Thanksgiving Day. That list tentatively includes Sam’s Club, Costco, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Menards, Von Maur, Nordstrom, Marshall’s and T.J. Maxx, among others.
Serdar S. Durmusoglu, associate professor of marketing at the University of Dayton, said retailers have some compelling reasons for expanding their hours to include Thanksgiving Day.
Traditional retailers find themselves in stiffer competition with online retailers such as Amazon, and they’re seeking to use their bricks-and-mortar stores to give them a competitive advantage, Durmusoglu said. Attracting shoppers into their stores as early as possible during the holiday season allows them to entice shoppers with rewards or loyalty offers to return at a later date, with pitches such as “Spend $50 today, get a coupon for $20 off your next purchase next week.”
Opening on the holiday also allows retailers to use deep discounts to unload excess inventory, including models of items that will soon be out of date, so they can make way for the newer models to be displayed and sold on or after Black Friday, Durmusoglu said.
Besides, many families have started incorporating mid-day shopping trips into their Thanksgiving Day meal plans. “Not everyone wants to watch football” on the holiday, Durmusoglu said, and retailers would rather see those people inside their stores spending money rather than shopping for bargains online.
Still, when retailers make the decision to add hours on Thanksgiving, they face the possibility of heavy criticism and occasional threats of personal boycotts on social media sites such as Facebook.
This exchange, for example, showed up on the Sears Facebook page last week, after a Facebook user posted the following: “The fact that Sears has made the decision to open on Thanksgiving day means they will not have my business. Holiday shopping is great and I know your business is struggling, but trying to jump-start your business on the backs of your people and making them miss time with their families and frankly actively participating in the destruction of an American holiday is really unappealing.”
Sears replied: “We are staffing with seasonal associates, and employees who want to earn extra money when possible. That way many of our store associates can enjoy the holiday at home with their families.”
A lengthy thread of comments and replies follows, and includes one comment that, “I for one will not be doing any of my holiday shopping at Sears this year. Any retailer that voluntarily chooses to be open Thanksgiving Day should be ashamed of themselves.”
Leena Munjal, senior vice president of Sears Holdings, parent company of both Sears and Kmart, said in a release, “This holiday season is all about giving more to our members and because many like to start shopping well before Black Friday, we’re excited to open our doors early on Thanksgiving and offer other early access opportunities for them to shop and save. I’d also like to especially thank our seasonal associates and those who have volunteered to share part of the day serving our members on Thanksgiving.”
Other retailers have made a very different decision than Sears did. Costco, the membership warehouse chain that will open its first Dayton-area store on Wilmington Pike near Feedwire Road in Centerville on Nov. 13 — two weeks before Thanksgiving Day — will adhere to its tradition and will be cl0sed on the holiday.
“Employees are our greatest asset, and when we are able to take care of our employees, they are more likely to come to work happy, work diligently and take care of our members,” Olivia Petch, Costco’s regional marketing manager, said in an email to this newspaper.
“Our CEO, Craig Jelinek has said, ‘Our employees work especially hard during the holiday season, and we simply believe they deserve the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with their families,’” Petch said.
Von Maur Department Store announced this week that it will again be closed on Thanksgiving — and vowed the policy will never change.
“As a family-owned business since 1872, we value most the opportunity to spend quality time with loved ones on Thanksgiving and other holidays,” Jim von Maur, president of Von Maur, said in a release. “The exceptional service and character our associates display day in and day out has been shaped by the likes of their parents, grandparents and friends. Giving them the opportunity to spend the holidays with those who have made such a lasting impact on their lives is a tradition we’ll never break.”
Columbus-based Bob Evans Restaurants took a rhetorical beating on its Facebook page last year when the company decided to open on Thanksgiving Day for the first time. But diners showed up in droves, prompting the restaurant chain to expand its serving hours this year. Instead of closing at 2 p.m. as most Bob Evans restaurants did last year, nearly all will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. this year.
“We had a very successful experience with our guests last year,” said Joseph Adney, vice president of marketing and communications for Bob Evans Restaurants. “We had a great turnout, and some guests said, ‘Hey, why aren’t you open later?’”
And this year, based on the restaurant chain’s Facebook page, Bob Evans Restaurants didn’t experience anywhere near the backlash from those who oppose the holiday opening as it did last year.
“We’re meeting a need for folks who want to come in,” Adney said. “Not everybody has family nearby, and not everyone wants to cook.”
About the Author
