It used to be that shopping the day after Thanksgiving was a fun family activity. It was a given that stores closed for the holiday, but you'd still have Friday and the weekend off, which was optimum Christmas shopping time.
After retailers in America recognized the importance of Black Friday, however, they started opening their doors earlier and earlier to get an edge on the competition.
The holidays are a time to spend with family. In recent years, however, more people have been missing their turkey dinners to go work at retail stores as Black Friday encroached ever closer into Thursday. Sears pioneered the Black Friday creep in 2010, followed by Walmart the subsequent year and then Target.
Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time of reflection and family bonding. It's a time for good food, relaxation and football. It's hard to do that though when you're planning your assault on six different shops so as not to miss the deals.
Besides the effect on the family, holiday shopping deals have actually triggered violence in the past. People have been trampled and beaten over Black Friday stock.
There's been a movement by some folks to end the madness, and finally retailers are following suit. According to bestblackfriday.com, 57 percent of Americans prefer retailers to keep their doors shut on Thanksgiving.
Of course, for people who get the shopping itch, Amazon is always open. For the sake of decency and the preservation of the holidays though, here's a list of stores closed on Thanksgiving.
- A.C. Moore
- Abt Electronics
- Academy Sports + Outdoors
- At Home
- BJ's Wholesale Club
- Blain's Farm and Fleet
- Burlington
- Cabela's
- Cost Plus World Market
- Costco
- Craft Warehouse
- Crate and Barrel
- DSW - Designer Shoe Warehouse
- Ethan Allen
- Gardner-White Furniture
- Guitar Center
- H&M
- Half Price Books
- Harbor Freight
- Hobby Lobby
- Home Depot
- HomeGoods
- Homesense
- IKEA
- JOANN Fabric and Craft Stores
- Jos. A. Bank
- La-Z-Boy (all corporately owned stores)
- Lowe's
- Marshalls
- Mattress Firm
- Micro Center
- Mills Fleet Farm
- Music & Arts
- Neiman Marcus
- Nordstrom
- Nordstrom Rack
- Office Depot and OfficeMax
- Outdoor Research (closed Black Friday too)
- P.C. Richard & Son
- Party City
- Patagonia
- Petco
- PetSmart
- Pier 1 Imports
- Publix
- Raymour & Flanigan Furniture
- Sam's Club
- Sears Hometown Stores
- Shoe Carnival
- Sierra Trading Post
- Sportsman's Warehouse
- Sprint (Corporate & Dealer Owned Stores; Mall Kiosks May Open)
- Staples
- Stein Mart
- Sur La Table
- The Container Store
- The Original Mattress Factory
- TJ Maxx
- Tractor Supply
- Trollbeads
- Von Maur
- West Marine
