Shoppers Angry as Black Friday Sales Push Into Thanksgiving

At New York Times, "Thanksgiving as Day to Shop Meets Rejection":

For the first time in years, Michelle Nyberg probably will not be standing in line when stores open for their Black Friday sales.

She still loves a good deal — last year she spent a couple of thousand dollars on markdowns that day, the Friday after Thanksgiving — but Ms. Nyberg says that she does not want retailers to ruin the holiday for her or their own employees.

Ms. Nyberg is drawing the line now that major chains like Target, Macy’s, Best Buy and Kohl’s say they will open for the first time at midnight on Thanksgiving, and Wal-Mart will go even further, with a 10 p.m. Thanksgiving start for deals on some merchandise.

Retailers, eager to be the first to draw customers on one of the biggest shopping days of the year, are pulling the equivalent of the Republican primary shuffle by opening earlier and earlier than competitors.

Last year, a few stores, including Toys “R” Us, pushed into Thanksgiving.

But judging from the negative reaction among dedicated Friday after Thanksgiving shoppers on blogs, Twitter and Facebook, the wave of midnight openings this year has crossed a line.

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My wife works retail management and she's not surprised at all. Most stores have been opening at 4:00am on Black Friday anyway. It just pushes back the clock a few hours. The best sales are those early ones, so I doubt the most competitive shoppers will boycott the stores. It's tough all around, and both stores and shoppers are looking to maximize their gains.