Thanksgiving Backlash? Is Black Friday on Friday Again?

A growing number of retailers are stepping away from Thanksgiving hours but the decision may not have anything to do with holiday goodwill.

photo: shutterstock
 

If you’re among those consumers who believe Thanksgiving is for turkey and not shopping, you will be pleased to know that a growing number of retail and department stores are keeping their doors closed for the holiday.

However, it’s likely the decision has less to do about goodwill for employees and more to do with sluggish Thanksgiving Day sales since 2011, when the trend began of early Black Friday hours on the holiday.

While some major malls and their primary retailers, like Toys “R” Us, J.C. Penney and Macy’s are still keeping their doors open on Thanksgiving, a handful of others like The Mall of America — the largest in the country — will be closed.

“More retailers are coming to their senses and realizing it is a family holiday and from a business point of view, it's not making much business sense,” Stephen D. Lebovitz, president and CEO of CBL & Associates Properties, told the Associated Press.

CBL is closing up to 72 of its mall operations on Thanksgiving. In the Pittsburgh area, that means the Monroeville Mall, the Annex at Monroeville, Westmoreland Crossing, and Westmoreland Mall in Greensburg will all be closed until midnight on Thanksgiving.

According to BlackFriday.com, other retailers closed on Thanksgiving include:
 

• Barnes & Noble
• Bed Bath & Beyond
• Burlington
• Cabela’s (Retail closed; Call Centers Open)
• Costco
• Crate and Barrel
• Dillard’s
• Dressbarn
• DSW
• GameStop
• Half Price Books
• Harbor Freight
• hhgregg
• Hobby Lobby
• Home Depot
• HomeGoods
• IKEA
• Jo-Ann Fabric & Craft Stores
• Jos. A. Bank
• Lowe’s
• Marshalls
• Mattress Firm
• Neiman Marcus
• Nordstrom
• Nordstrom Rack
• Office Depot and OfficeMax
• The Original Mattress Factory
• Patagonia
• Petco
• PetSmart
• Pier 1 Imports
• Sam’s Club
• Staples
• The Container Store
• T.J. Maxx