Black Friday Deals 2009: "Christmas Creep" Leads To Earlier Deals

By Ashley M. Heher, AP Retail Writer

CHICAGO (AP) -- Sears took "Christmas creep" one step further Wednesday, pitching its weekly sales as "Black Friday doorbuster" deals before Halloween.

The merchant, owned by struggling parent company Sears Holdings Corp., said it would kick off the weekly specials Friday evening and open stores at least two hours early every Saturday through Thanksgiving, hoping to draw shoppers with the promise of markdowns before the day after Thanksgiving.

The traditional shopping spree -- dubbed Black Friday because it often was the day when a surge of shoppers helped stores break into profitability for the full year -- has marked the kickoff of holiday shopping for many shoppers. But its importance has faded in recent years as merchants started hawking the deep sales and expanded hours usually reserved for that day well in advance.

Sears' decision to start the sales nearly a full month in advance of the traditional Nov. 27 shopping spree shows just how desperate the struggling chain -- and its competitors -- are ahead of what's expected to be a grim holiday season.

George Rosenbaum, chairman of the retail consulting firm Leo J. Shapiro and Associates, said he expects other merchants to change their traditional Black Friday strategies, too, either by offering deeper-than-usual discounts or expanding the amount of time they're available to shoppers.

"Retailers are prepared for the worst," he said. "(They're) going to go even more aggressively than they did last year."

Meanwhile, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is already advertising its selection of holiday toys for under $10, and Amazon Inc., Target Corp. and Wal-Mart are all going head-to-head slashing down prices on yet-to-be released hardcovers that are for sale on their Web sites.

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At best, economists expect holiday sales to be flat from a year ago, when businesses recorded their biggest declines in at least four decades. Economic data released Tuesday showed an even more grim picture, as shoppers said they were worried about job security.

"I think retailers are not counting on much improvement to begin with," said Michael Niemira, chief economist at the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Sears spokeswoman Natalie Norris-Howser said the deals will rotate each week. But they'll be available only from 7 a.m. until noon each Saturday. (For the first week of the promotion, Sears will begin the sales this Friday at 5 p.m.)

Norris-Howser said Sears, which is based in Hoffman Estates, Ill., will also offer Saturday specials after Black Friday in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Among the discounts advertised by Sears are a 302-piece Craftsman mechanic's tool set that's half off, a $400 elliptical machine that typically sells for $700, and $80 diamond earnings that are marked down almost 70 percent.

The following week's specials include a 42-inch Zenith plasma screen TV for $499, about 23 percent off.

Comments

[karen1p]

This Christmas the only thing I am buying is food for Christmas dinner.....and perhaps a few taper candles. The corporations be dam.ned. We are not joining in this year.

[StickMarket]

Why is education & health care still so expensive for so many, especially in the 'most prosperous nation on earth'? WHy are there no jobs? Why no unemployment extension?
good articles; http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com

[neutrino74]

Why are there no jobs? Great question. Certainly not a problem that materialized overnight. In the short term we have long had booms and busts. On top of that we have had a long term trend of exporting manufacturing jobs overseas. I put this at the feet of Reagan and so called Reagonomics. Basically, the removal of almost any constraints on what can be done with money and with the removal of high marginal tax rates. The combination results in lots of individuals with lots of free cash looking for ways to invest and get even more money combined with lax laws that allow destructive behavior in the pursuit of high returns.

Clearly there are many other threads to this story. My point is that a dominant theme has been the combination of get rich quick schemes along with the increase in those clamoring to play that game. Games such as borrowing money buying a company and breaking it up, shipping the jobs overseas and selling off the buildings for scrap. That might gain a few bucks for the person doing this at the cost of thousands of jobs as well as the damage caused to the local economy where that factory once existed.

[josephXY]

The problems for the retail business doesn't come out of the blue. Advertising, one key aspect,
fails to have the desired effect. Last Xmas people were in the mood to get discount bargains and
they got it. Same all over again this year. (Not to forget the many personal financial problems
existing now, ie. the credit card problems.)
If the retailers again have to go into serious discount mode, the media crisis is likely to make
rapid progress, latest in January and February, when the accounting is done, and the "reset",
cutback, of ad budgets again, begins to show.
Advertising was in case pretty excessive in recent years, not much sensibility was shown towards
consumers for whom advertising all too often simply was too much, tried to avoid it. That's just
one factor. The other very aspect, the one actually having "executing" power, are the costs
of advertising. The article gives a brief at the narrow margins and those of course do not
allow for large ad budgets. For a while one or the other fools party might will continue until the gang
of brutal facts suddenly appears and shuts down whatever.
Where it all ends for newspapers is the "newspaper death watch", a site listing
folded newspapers:
http://www.newspaperdeathwatch.com/
and for magazines:
http://www.magazinedeathpool.com/

[ResearchtheFacts]

Stop greasing the wheels giving them the tools to continue to victimize us with. Come January and it will be back to business as usual with them harrassing you for payments for the crap they lured you to buy.

Black Friday is the biggest push for citizens like us to spend big bucks. Reject that idea and lobby for the Americans who are living in tent cities and storage units. On food stamps and for the masses that will be in food lines this Thanksgiving.

For this holiday season for the best interest of American citizens struggling to make ends meet, or to get through another day of joblessness and hopelessness everywhere across our nation. The rest of us still surviving the economic crisis are opting out utilizing financial protest by not buying into the consumerism of the holidays. This includes not using banking & credit products for holiday purchases.

Boycott on Black Friday November 27, 2009. Spread the word!

Basically, only purchase what we essentially need and leave the cheap Chinese crap on the shelves. Beforehand writing or calling congress, making it clear if they don’t start doing something proactive that we can see or approve of to help the plight of ordinary Americans over Wall Street or the Banking Industry then this country can look for other ways to make up for the GDP losses else where. Congress, get it from the banking industry or Wall Street through heavy taxation on bonuses. Start protesting.

http://hiteminthewallet.wordpress.com

[neutrino74]

I've never been big on spending a ton at Christmas. However, this year I will ramp up my donations. My favorites are the KGO Thanksgiving Charities, Fistula Foundation, St. Anthony's in San Francisco and The Smile Train.

[CDCtrading]

Economic policy needs to change. For the past 30 years only the top 1% of earners have been the major beneficiaries of economic recoveries while everyone else lags. We need policies and programs that will hlpe low and middle income people. More shovel ready projects. Universal health care

good articles; http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com

[1984IsHere]

Come on American public that is completely overstretched on credit and struggling to keep the lights on. Come on out to our defunct and outdated brick and mortar outlets to finance yet more overpriced crap that you don't need and can't afford. Do your patriotic duty of getting our economy back on track. You know the one that was ruined by Wall Street financiers and predatory lending agencies. Don't worry about those reports you've been hearing about the credit card companies jacking up everybody's interest rates, charge it to the max! It's all about the kids! You don't want your kids to feel like they're not loved do you?! Ho Ho Ho suckas!

[jamalc]

sweet.