black friday : All posts

column: Top 5: Stores that I wish were still open in Ann Arbor

Shopping dominates the U.S. consciousness during Thanksgiving Week, and at AnnArbor.com, we need to stay on top of it.

So far, I've edited or written multiple stories about Black Friday (and yes, that means Thanksgiving Day, too); Cyber Monday; and the reason for the holiday — thankfulness.

But as I consider the wave of retail pressure over the past week, I'm also a bit consoled by Small Business Saturday - a version of "shop local" that's building momentum between Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

with gallery: Images from Black Friday at the Briarwood Mall

With Black Friday the kickoff to the holiday shopping season, bargain hunters came out to the Briarwood Mall in Ann Arbor in force.

Video, accompaniment & poll: Watch AnnArbor.com's 'Flight of the Black Friday shopper'

Hundreds of shoppers flooded the aisles and check-out lines for Target's inaugural Thanksgiving day opening in the hours before Black Friday.

Law enforcement officers and line monitors on the scene helped make sure that no one was trampled amid the excitement. Target even had one employee whose sole job was to make sure that everyone got their shopping carts in an orderly fashion.

Black Friday scenes across the state from MLive reporters and Twitter

Shoppers across the state flooded stores like Target on the biggest retail shopping day of the year.

Daniel Brenner | AnnArbor.com

While Ann Arbor shoppers were very tame, there were scuffles at a Walmart in Saginaw and one food court-brawl at the Woodland Mall in Kentwood.

Early openings on Black Friday: 'It really got rid of the mean crowds'

Shoppers were out in large numbers, but like this crowd at Target, they were cool customers.

Dan Brenner | AnnArbor.com

“The crazy crowd, the pushing the shoving, that’s gone now,” support manager Victor Quinn said.

“By opening the doors during Thursday evening they’ve really done something that has helped put the customers more at peace. It really got rid of the mean crowds.”

Live Updates: Black Friday madness around Ann Arbor

Another Detroit Lions loss is in the books, naps have been taken, and the leftovers are tempting us from the fridge, but for some the Thanksgiving day festivities are also a kick-off to the holiday shopping season.

Share your Thanksgiving Day photos and tell us what you're thankful for

Today we take a break to reflect on what we're thankful for. With 2012 nearing its end we're wondering what you were most thankful for during the past year. Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.

With poll: It's official: Black Thursday is the new Black Friday

Black Friday shoppers at Target last year load their carts with flat-screen TVs.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Retail report: Top 4 strategies local businesses employ to tackle the holiday shopping season

Michelle Spoljaric, of Portland, OR, shops with her daughter Sarah Drew, of Ann Arbor, as they look over a Christmas calendar at Rock Paper Scissors on Main Street.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

retail report/with poll: Black Friday moves to 8 p.m. Thanksgiving Day for U.S. Walmart stores

It's official: Black Friday isn't just about Friday anymore.

Walmart - the nation's largest retailer - will rollback hours on what used to be a post-Thanksgiving shopping ritual to even earlier on Thanksgiving Day.

With Poll: Briarwood Mall moves Black Friday opening time to midnight

Black Friday will start four hours earlier this year at Ann Arbor's largest shopping center.

Briarwood Mall will open its doors to shoppers as the clock strikes midnight on Nov. 23, the day after Thanksgiving.

That's just one sign that local retailers and national chains are formulating their plans to make the most of the shopping bonanza that occurs as revelers emerge from turkey-induced stupor.

Wall Street Journal/With Poll: Think you're getting the best deals on Black Friday? Maybe not

Waiting in the cold for hours on Black Friday or making sure you log on right at the beginning of “Cyber Monday” might a cultural tradition for some Americans, but it’s not always a guarantee to get the best deals of the holiday season, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

OUR VALUES

COLUMN: Overspent? Do you dream of playful or scary animals?

Editor's note: This post is part of a series by Dr. Baker on Our Values about core American values. In light of Cyber-Monday, Dr. Baker is discussing America's consumer culture and our tendencies to overspend.

Can your dreams tell you anything about your consumer behavior? Interpreting dreams is an age-old endeavor. Modern science, however, has produced reliable research on the meanings of particular dreams. That includes dreams indicating that some people are more materialistic than others. James Roberts reports on this research in "Shiny Objects," the book we’re discussing this week.

Suppose these are recurring themes in your dreams: falling, ferocious animals you can’t control, dead people or ghostly figures beckoning to the grave.
What would all this mean? These themes are common in the dreams of "high materialists"—those who buy a lot, overspend, and purchase things for status value.

These themes rarely occur in the dreams of "low materialists" — people who stay within their means, who don’t overspend, and who purchase things for use value or comfort, not for status. For example, death is a theme in 21 percent of the dreams high materialists have, while it is mentioned in only 3 percent of the low materialists' dreams. When low materialists dream of ferocious animals, they are able to tame them — the "scary dog" becomes the "playful dog." High materialists can't do that.

Occupy protesters stage action at Ann Arbor-area Walmart Friday morning

This story has been updated with information from Pittsfield Township police

A group of Occupy Ann Arbor protesters headed to the Walmart in Pittsfield Township on Friday morning to stage a Black Friday event to urge people to boycott the national (and largely corporate-fueled) shopping day.

Holiday 2010: Ann Arbor area shopping centers brace for crush of Black Friday shoppers

Black Friday exists for one reason: To get more people into stores and spending money.

But at the same time, the promotions surrounding it - special events, early morning shopping hours and a reputation for deals - have created a momentum of its own, making the day after Thanksgiving one of most-discussed retail day of the year.

Getting back to the reason: It’s the money. That day, 138 million shoppers will hit stores that day, according projections from the National Retail Federation.

Downtown Ann Arbor, Kerrytown stores and restaurants hope for part of Black Friday spending

Black Friday fever is spreading downtown.

While independent Ann Arbor merchants fall short of opening at midnight or offering deep discounts to create a shopping frenzy, many downtown businesses are extending their hours or holding sales the day after Thanksgiving.

“It’s a little different for us as a downtown business. A lot of people look to the box stores or the mall for Black Friday,” said Rick Wedel, co-owner of 16-Hands gallery. “We see an uptick as the (holiday) Main Street lights are turned on Friday. But it’s not a bust your door down in the wee hours of the morning crowd.”

Holiday '09

Cyber Monday: Early sales strong but strategies shifting

Will Black Friday eventually swallow Cyber Monday?

That could be the inevitable implication of a trend this year in which some retailers launched their best online deals days before Cyber Monday arrived, one Ann Arbor executive said. Many retailers tied early online deals to Black Friday.

“This year there were definitely a lot more online sites playing in Black Friday, which is definitely a trend of note,” said Kevin Ertell, vice president for online retail for Ann Arbor-based ForeSee Results. “In the past you’d see a lot of the … sites would not do something on Black Friday. Now it looks like they’re doing both.”

Online retailers are reporting strong Cyber Monday sales, according to several early reports.

Holiday '09

Black Friday results: More shoppers hit stores this weekend but they spent less

As the closely-watched Black Friday weekend winds down, a National Retail Federation survey conducted over the weekend said that this year, more people shopped but they spent less.

According to NRF’s Black Friday shopping survey, 195 million shoppers visited stores and websites over Black Friday weekend, up from 172 million last year.

However, the average spending over the weekend dropped to $343.31 per person from $372.57 a year ago. Total spending reached an estimated $41.2 billion.

Black Friday is over. Now what?

Ahhh! We did it.

Savvy shoppers everywhere are sighing a collective sigh as the culmination of weeks of planning and anticipation paid off in early morning shopping efforts on Black Friday.

Was it good for you?

Did you get the items you were looking for? Did the long lines, the icy snow, and the sleep deprivation pay off? Were the sales everything that you thought they would be?

Couple Married at Allen Park Best Buy on Black Friday

I thought I saw it all this morning at Best Buy in Ann Arbor before the sun came up---

A line wrapped around the building long before the store was scheduled to open,

Cars covered with snow in a parking lot so full people were parked in a nearby overflow lot,

Security, suited managers, and Pittsfield Police back-up in case anxious customers became unruly,

A tent pitched near the main entrance for those die-hards that literally camped out over night for the doorbuster items that were on sale.