Black Thursday On Thanksgiving 2014 — Who Is To Blame For Stores Staying Open?
There’s an awful lot of controversy around stores staying open for Black Thursday Thanksgiving 2014 — with some groups decrying it as a violation of worker’s rights and a sad symbol of consumerism. But there might be more to blame than corporations. According to some surveys, the demand to stay open is coming largely from one group — Millennials.
Recent research from LoyaltyOne actually shows the opposite of the Thanksgiving 2014 shopping craze among Millennials. A steady 50 percent of those questioned said that “all-day shopping hours on Thanksgiving Day are a bad idea that detracts from the traditional celebration.” Another 33 percent thought that having extra time for holiday shopping was “a great idea,” while the remaining 17 percent are undecided about Black Thursday.
Fred Thompson, LoyaltyOne retail practice leader, noted decisions for whether or not to stay open need to be decided on a case-by-case basis — they shouldn’t risk upsetting clients who are anti-Thanksgiving Day shopping this Black Thursday.
“Savvy retailers put the customer at the center of all their decision. Although opening on Thanksgiving Day may lead to incremental sales that day, retailers could risk upsetting their most loyal customers who routinely shop their stores year-round. Retailers should identify who their best customers are and respond with Thanksgiving and Black Friday sales strategies accordingly.”
LoyaltyOne’s poll numbers aren’t the only ones that point the finger at Millennials for holiday shopping demand. Millennials also had a majority of pro-Thanksgiving shopping respondents in studies conducted by social networking app Skout and Offers.com. A Time article noted that the generation of shoppers — who are projected to make up 30 percent of buying power by 2020 — may be the reason more stores are staying open for Black Thursday.
“So it would seem as if all of the retailers that insist on being open on Thanksgiving are doing so to an outsized degree to play up to millennials… If the hundreds of thousands of Americans who hate the idea of consumerism encroaching on Thanksgiving and have pledged to not shop on the holiday are looking for something to blame other than plain old greed on the part of retailers, it would be easy to point the finger at millennials. After all, as many “Black Thursday” boycotters have pointed out, the stores wouldn’t be open on Thanksgiving if no one showed up to shop that day.”
Despite what demographic might be most likely to hit store on Thanksgiving, at least some of the tech-savvy generation has been active on social media speaking out against the extended hours for Black Thursday.
It’s ridiculous @Target opens at 6pm on “Black Thursday” It’s THANKSGIVING No1 should show up and I hope I don’t work at @Target much longer— Kyle ~ (@KylePallo) November 15, 2014
I think everyone needs to boycott stores on “Black Thursday” aka THANKSGIVING, so unfair these ppl need to leave their families, disgusting— Julie Walker (@JulieWalker24) November 14, 2014
Would you shop on Thanksgiving Day 2014?
[Image via Flickr]
