The Friday after Thanksgiving Day in the US, probably the most hazardous day to go to any shopping center and the day most hated by shop clerks everywhere.

In my area, the mall is opening at 4 in the morning with some stores not closing until Midnight. I honestly see no point in staying open that long, especially considering the 'deals' that are being offered, the sales are ok but certainly not worth lining up before dawn.

I'm also closing tomorrow night at a store, so I'm really not looking forward to tomorrow. Now I've worked Black Friday in years past, and I must say that customers are horrible. They are angry, cranky, haggling for better deals, and constantly yelling at you for things that are not under your control (ie stock availability and expired coupons from weeks ago).

What's your take on the early morning sales, the people who show up, the deals that are being offered?

Why do they do this? This "Black Friday" thing? With the shops and everything I mean.

Its the start of the Holiday Shopping Season, also the busiest shopping day of the year. A lot of people line up to be the first few in the store on the day after Thanksgiving.

I heard that the Monday after is the busiest day for online shoppers too because people are back to work and start holiday shopping online while at work.

Yea the malls around here are opening at midnight tonight. o3o
And lots of stores are opening before 6 AM. 8D;;

I want to go shopping since it's a prime time for me to go xmas shopping without having to spend lots for some certain item a friend likes you know?

I suppose, but getting up that early seems a bit too much trouble, especially after a family get together the day before. I will be going to the mall tomorrow to do some shopping and use some coupons but I don't plan to get there until 9 or 10.

Scary. o.o; I'd never go anywhere NEAR a store on
one of those crazy sale days. :/

I might go.. Though I have no money. It'll be fun watching people fight over things..Plus I think my parents are going, so I can just tag along XD

It's going to be fun, I'm sure... Though I can't help but wonder if EVERY store here is going to have a sale. Some might not be able to afford to...

It's kind of wierd, I live in the US, but today was the first time I've even HEARD of Black Friday. My family doesn't go shopping a lot. . . we especially hate malls during the "holiday season". . .

If you ask me, it doesn't make sense. . .

Ohh I get it. Yeah we have it here too at Puerto Rico.

A lot makes sense now. :P

@`clockwork
I was never big on shopping the day after Thanksgiving, my family used to go to a Doctor Who convention during the weekend anyway. We still go to the convention, just not all weekend now.

@fuyumi_saito
Fun?! It's always scary to me, especially last one I worked the morning shift >< That was Hell on Earth due to the customers that were banging on the glass for us to open an hour before we were supposed to.

@zipperglow
Any store is going to be horrible from now til mid January (can't forget all the returns and New Years sales that come with the season). I think most of my shopping will actually be done online.

@Andre
How bad is it where you are?

You can get the same sales in many stores on other days and less crowded. It is kind of funny how people react to merchandise, like it is a life or death situation. I am sure my store will not be that busy, considering we are not the store that people wait until 4 am to get into. We have the same sales as we always do. I don't see what is so big about it.

Originally Posted by nike13

@`clockwork
I was never big on shopping the day after Thanksgiving, my family used to go to a Doctor Who convention during the weekend anyway. We still go to the convention, just not all weekend now.

Doctor Who convention? What's that? xD

@DreamEmpress
I think I want to work at your store. The shop I'm working in is actually going out of business, so we've got signs up and stuff so that just makes the people more mean/rude/abusive. Granted, we have some nice things, I've bought a lot from the shop over the years but I would never wait in line to get in, no matter what the sale. It is kind of funny though, the going out of business sales are going really well but the prices are more than they were before the company was bought out. People are buying things at 20% off when a month ago the price was 40% off >< People just seem to get worked up by 'Going out of Business' or 'Day after Thanksgiving Sale' they don't seem to notice the prices or that they are getting worse deals.

@`clockwork
Doctor Who was/is a British Scifi show ^^ The convention incorporated a lot of different shows (Babylon 5, Blake's 7, other scifi shows). Although now its strictly Doctor Who, so things are smaller (hence us going from 3 day convention goers to 1 day).

Now I understand why my parents always avoided the mall at the time. Also, my family tends to not like very noisy, crowded places. The noise especially gets to me. Sounds like Black Friday is VERY packed and noisy, and from your discriptions it sounds like theres a lot of arse holes around. . . so I'll definently remember to avoid now. . .

I've never heard this term before, but does 'Black Friday' basically mean the start of the X-mas shopping craze?

@zipperglow
Yeah, avoid when possible unless there's something for sale you really want. It is busy and I think getting up so early after a family holiday dinner makes people cranky.

@Sir.Spoon
Yup, the start of the holiday shopping season. Not sure why its called 'Black Friday' other than it starts before the sun comes up (at least now it does).

@ sir spoon- exactly. I think the term "Black Friday" Applies to sales that happen in the malls stating the friday after Thanks giving. But I hadn't heard of the term until today ,either. ..

I'm so glad I work in a fast food restaurant and not a retail store, I don't know how I would cope. Whiny kids, bitchy parents, the husband that just doesn't care, and a crazy old battle axe of a grandmother. Not to mention you'd constantly be folding clothes and jeans, that must drive sale clerks insane, the way people unfold clothes and then plop them back on the table...I do it sometimes for fun

nike13: lol.. Well I am sure we will get crazy but not as bad as other stores. I am working good hours were I don't have to worry about opening or closing. Makes life easier on me. Though Saturday I work 12 till closing which is 10pm. I close that night and it will be crazy. So much money I have to count. God damned people lol... Yeah I am key holder or asst. manger (whatever works).

Yeah, it must be very annoying for them. That's why I always try to fold shirts when I"m shopping for clothes. I can't fold very well though. . .

@Sir.Spoon
I work in a furniture store, I'm just happy when a lady brings her husband/older son/brother along cause if she doesn't one of us associates gets to carry the boxes with no help from them (I guess since they think we work on commission a 75 pound box is OK, well we don't and the job req said 50 pounds). Shame on you for making sales people's lives harder just for fun.

@DreamEmpress
Eww closing, I once wanted to be 3rd Key (like a mini assistant manager) but that store closed and the company screwed me out of pay. I was being relied upon for counting and other 3rd Key stuff already, just wanted the pay that went with it. I close tomorrow and open Saturday, then I'm relaxing Sunday.

@zipperglow
Its nice that you try ^^ I'm the same way, I really don't like messing up displays and stuff cause I know how annoying it is when you've just set something up and a group of rampaging customers comes and ransacks everything (my poor beds always end up with kids jumping on them).

it's wierd, but I find it stressful, to see clothes just strewn about like that, and then only one person there to clean up like a mess made by twenty people. . .
[/i]

• I used to go shopping on Black Fridays.. it was really hectic. Don't even THINK about driving. LOL Have someone drop you off!
  
  And I couldn't imagine working on that day. I'd probably die. >< I can barely SHOP on those days when I'm a customer, I really can't think about how horrible the sales people are being bossed around. I used to work in the mall in sales in the summer. The only holiday I worked on was July 4th and that was pretty crazy in itself since our mall is right next to the beach, prime location to watch the fireworks.

One of the malls around here is opening at midnight and staying opened UNTIL midnight the next day.
>_____>;
Most stores are opening at 3-4am.
I see no point in getting up at three in the morning to go shopping.
No matter the deals.
I'm not a morning person,so NO WAY.
O____<
I've gone shopping on black fridays many a days.
I went once at 7am,and by god it was horrible.
The people are rude,hard headed,and just down right mean.
And not just the customers,the workers can be just as worse.
Like its my fault you had to get up at the crack of dawn to go to work.
Or its my fault your item that you wanted sold out.
Leave it to the people who care.
;b

Besides,they'll be plenty more sales now that Christmas time is here.
I'll wait.

@zipperglow
I feel the same way, even before I started working in retail, it just seemed rude and unfair to the people working.

@wish
I at least luck out with 4th of July, I work in Illinois so there's not too much beach traffic. Especially since we're not in Chicago ^^

@Lolly
That's what I'm hoping, that and no one on my shopping list wants clothes. I plan on doing 90% of the shopping via the computer. Only reason I'm going tomorrow is for those select few items that ordering without seeing in person would probably end up badly ^^ I also don't want a repeat of last year. I kind of forgot about Christmas til the week of ^^;