sparse crowds at stores today

[rdking647]

reuters reports sparse crowds at stores today. good.
anyone out shopping today is an idiot


With six fewer shopping days this year than in 2012, retailers who reap nearly half of annual profits during the winter holiday season are nibbling away at the Thanksgiving holiday. But early visits to the stores by Reuters showed sparse crowds - a sign that not all U.S. shoppers are keen to open their wallets so quickly.

A Walmart store in Woodbridge, New Jersey, was virtually empty at 2:30 p.m., with store associates outnumbering shoppers.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/eyeing-holiday-sales-more-u-060933591.html

[Warpy]

1. Good. If it's a bust, they'll close

Walmart has made a lot of really stupid decisions over the past year, from trying to run the store on a skeleton crew of part timers to opening on holidays when very few people have any desire at all to shop.

And then they wonder why sales are falling through the bottom.

[TlalocW]

2. I was (and am) still worried that this will be repeated

But apparently the stores didn't think to consider the turkey and general over-eating comas that people put themselves in.

Hopefully this will head off any new shopping "traditions."

TlalocW

[chillfactor]

5. yep....I was with great company today and had a wonderful meal....

and took a two-hour nap when I got home....marvelous day and NO SHOPPING...but then no shopping tomorrow either....

[Journeyman]

3. If stores want more shopping hours, why don't they lobby Congress to change the holiday. . .

change the holiday to the "fifth (or sixth) Thursday before Christmas."

Wouldn't be the first time the holiday's been tinkered with -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_(United_States) -- and everyone could get what they prefer: the shop keepers get a guaranteed extended shopping season while the workers (for the most part) could be left alone to enjoy the occasion with their families.

[tblue37]

9. When FDR tried to move Thanksgiving to appease retailers

upset by a shortened shopping season because the holiday fell so late one year, the American public were outraged that he was messing with tradition.

Of course, modern Americans are consumers uber alles, so maybe they wouldn't react as negatively over such an attempt to extend the shopping season.

[WowSeriously]

11. Depends on the party of the President, I suspect.

[madokie]

4. On our way home a few minutes ago

the walmart store we passed had the parking lot full of cars, Kmart too. I'm talking about parking lots that were totally full of cars and pickups. More than I've ever seen at either store before.

[siouxsiecreamcheese]

19. Same here

It was about 6pm and the cars were overflowing into nearby parking lots, plus many parking on the grass. I was so pissed at the hypocrites who live here who all said they refuse to shop on Thanksgiving and there they were. Now WalMart will do this every year no doubt.

[LiberalEsto]

6. Most of us who cooked are too exhausted to go shopping

and there is also football, not to mention all that sleep-inducing tryptophan in the turkey.
Besides, who needs more electronic crap?

[onenote]

24. Posted using electronic crap?

Personally, I managed to spend time with family, watch some football, have a nice dinner, and go to the movies yesterday. A most enjoyable holiday.

[LiberalEsto]

28. I cooked my ass off and my back hurts from lifting heavy stuff in and out of the oven

How I wish I had time to sit down with my family, watch a movie and enjoy myself. Yes, they helped, but Thanksgiving isn't really that great a day for us kitchen slaves.

[Lifelong Dem]

7. Today is the day for giving thanks for what you have.

Tomorrow is the day for going crazy over what you don't have.



http://tinyurl.com/kbpwghr

[Skip Intro]

8. Today is about giving thanks, but my sis went shopping at WM

this evening after 6:00 and said the place was packed, took over 30 minutes in line to check out.

[marble falls]

10. Good news. Thanks for posting this.

[Recursion]

12. "Black Friday" hasn't been the biggest shopping day for years

Retailers know that, too. It's mostly just a media-fed story now.

[Drunken Irishman]

16. I think I read the busiest shopping day of the year is actually the Saturday before Christmas.

[Recursion]

17. At least as of three years ago

Which was the last time I saw any numbers

[AtheistCrusader]

13. If I ran a business, and competed with big box retailers, i'd OWN them all.

It's very simple, start your sales a week before the holiday, have plenty of stock on hand, and offer to price match all through the next week, against any other retailer. Just bring your receipt back in. Difference refunded.

If I could maintain stocks, there'd be no customers for those other stores come 'black friday' anyway, and next year, they'd have to come up with something else.

Having people camped out in front of your store is stupid. The black Friday shopping rush is stupid.

[Agschmid]

23. That is actually what is happening.

But remember at some point Amazon would sell at a loss on a few items, you wouldn't be able to match that price and you'd end up closed.

Watch out for Amazon and their loss leaders.

[Hekate]

14. Good

[SheilaT]

15. Last year as I drove home from my job a little after 8pm on Thanksgiving,

the K-Mart I pass had quite a few cars in their lot and a crowd of people waiting for the store to open at 9pm.

This year, same time, same store had very few cars and people. I know that's only one store in one city, but still.

So-called Black Friday has never, as I understand it, been the actual biggest day for sales in the holiday season. That day, if I'm recalling correctly from a report heard on the radio (probably some NPR show) is usually the Saturday before Christmas, unless Christmas is on, I forget, a Sunday or Saturday, then it's a different day.

I'm also old enough to remember when there were very few sales before Christmas, but lots of them after that day.

[Agschmid]

22. It's diluted this year.

More and more people are doing it so everyone doesn't have to go to Kmart. Also many have been open longer so the traffic is spread out over more time.

[Boom Sound 416]

18. Anyone out shopping today is an idiot?

I don't understand that.

[Agschmid]

21. They forgot to add "IMHO"...

That makes it okay right?

[Agschmid]

20. My experience is the same.

I just parked in the second row at my mall.

Pretty easy.

[spinbaby]

25. On TV this morning

Our local news was energetically promoting Black Friday with their reporter standing in a store that was obviously mostly empty.

[CountAllVotes]

26. Good

I think I'll go back to bed and just forget it.

I gave up on "the holidays" a long time ago. No point for me any longer.

[rdking647]

27. even cnbc had has an editorial against shopping on thanksgiving

from the editorial
That being said, what I truly hope happens in my heart of hearts, is that this massive retail test is an abysmal failure. The reality is that if consumers don't show up and spend in a meaningful way this year, retailers won't do it again next year. Yes, this is another example of the consumers driving the business decisions. A business won't offer these early hours on a holiday if there aren't a drove of people taking advantage of them.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101230065