Borders Group is giving discount on best sellers on Black Friday

Members of Michigan Retailers Association are going to give 50% or more discounts. freep.com reports:

…members say they are expecting a 1% decline in holiday sales compared with last year. Many are already discounting 50% or more and 45% of them have added lower-price items to appeal to cash-strapped consumers.

Ann Arbor-based Borders Group, Inc. (NYSE:BGP) started to send special savings coupons to its 30 million loyalty program members. This will go on through the current holiday season. This gave them a two-day jump on Black Friday deals. Members will get:

50% off on selected bestsellers.

50% off on Blu-Ray disks.

The deals also include holiday wrap, digital photo frames, DVD box sets and CDs.

On October 6, 2008, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) started its holiday season sales promotion. You will get toys in $10 on Black Friday. Kids coats would cost $4 and Garmin GPS for $97.

Arundel Mills Mall in Hanover will open at midnight on Black Friday. It will offer $2500 worth of gift cards every half hour throughout the evening.

Queenstown based Prime Outlets will open up at 12 a.m. and host a “pajama party.” The first 500 shoppers who will visit guest services wearing pajamas will receive a free goodie bag filled with Jockey brad pajamas and other prizes.

Baltimore based Ruth’s Chris Steak House, a famous restaurant chain,

gave out its Black Friday deal. Diners on Black Friday and Saturday will receive one free petit filet or New York strip steak for purchasing another entrée in Ruth’s Chris Steak House situated in Annapolis, Baltimore and Pikesville.

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freep.com

Baltimore Business Journal

eBay is offering “$1 Holiday Doorbusters” on Black Friday

On November 25, 2008, J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) announced that it is going to give the most compelling Black Friday prices ever offered in the company’s history. More than 400 products will be given on deep discounts.

According to Marshal Cohen, Chief Retail Analyst, The NPD Group, Inc., retailers would have to give shoppers the products they want at any price. In his 33 years of service in the retail sector for the first time, he is seeing that shoppers would enjoy 75% off on Black Friday and the week after that.

Online sellers have also become active as they know that some shoppers are going to shop online for better price and free shipping offers. On November 24, 2008, eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) introduced “$1 Holiday Doorbusters.” Company officials said that 100 gift items including digital cameras and GPS devices, one luxury item, including a brand-new Chevrolet Corvette, will be listed each day until December 8, 2008 for $1 fixed price.

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money.cnn.com

Wal-Mart stores Inc. will offer the best deals on Black Friday 2008

Some of the best Thanksgiving and Black Friday deals are offered on big flat screen televisions. Wal-Mart Inc. (WMT), Best Buy Co., Inc.(NYSE:BBY) will have 50 inch plasma television 40% cheaper compared to the price of 2007.

Macy's, Inc. (NYSE:M) offering deep cuts on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The retailer told its credit-card customers that on Black Friday at 5 a.m. there is going to be lots of morning specials. On November 19, 2008, the stores had “our lowest prices of the season.”

Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE:JWN) is offering “Ultimate Gift Collection” for web buyers. These gift packages are designed by fashion designer Tory Burch, celebrity photographer Sam Jones and artist Ruben Toledo.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) is going to be the winner of this Black Friday. It will give away the best deals among the retailers all over USA. It will be giving away biggest discounts this year. Wal-Mart is offering $4 prescriptions which helped the company to grab the market share from Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT). Bentonville, Arkansas based Wal-Mart will give 16-ounce can of Ocean Spray cranberry sauce for 88 cents at early morning on Black Friday. It will also give 42-inch Polaroid flat-panel television for $598 to the early morning shoppers. This is $200 less than the usual price. Sam’s Club, the subsidiary of Wal-Mart, made special agreements with Nintendo Co., Ltd (TYO:7974) to provide additional games accessories with its Wii game player. Sam’s Club will sell the entire package for $425 on Black Friday.

Kohl's Corporation (NYSE:KSS) in Greensboro is offering 30-40% discounts.

On Black Friday, Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD) will let customers buy toys, tools and consumer electronics on layaway for the first time in 19 years. Shoppers can buy things on installments.

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Bloomberg

money.cnn.com

Black Friday : also significant to the plumbers

Black Friday is the buzz of the towns but what about Thanksgiving? Do you forget about this festival? What about the Thanksgiving Turkey and all the foods that goes into your stomach and in your drainage systems? The next day after Thanksgiving is not only a big day for retailers but plumbers as well. The excessive food waste clogs sinks and toilets around the country. Hence, the next day after Thanksgiving is also a busy day for plumbers. Like the retailers they also make extra money on this day. Roto-Rooter, the largest plumbing service in USA receives large number of calls and it is the single busiest day of the year for the company. Market Watch reports:

Most Americans take part in Thanksgiving celebrations with eleven or more people. Big holiday meals require a busy kitchen, meaning lots of grease and food go down the kitchen drain into the garbage disposal. Holiday guests require extra showers, wash cycles and toilet flushes. "Often, a house already has partially clogged drainpipes that aren't noticeable until holiday guests arrive and overwhelm the system," said Paul Abrams, a spokesman for Roto-Rooter.

On a typical Friday, calls to Roto-Rooter jumps up by almost 50%. During the Thanksgiving weekend, Roto-Rooter call jumps up by 21%.

During the weekend they stack up a revenue close to million dollars. This year, the plumber service is afraid that the number of emergency calls will decrease.

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Market Watch

Some interesting facts about Black Friday

Black Friday is creating fever all over USA. The Friday after Thanksgiving is considered to be the day that kicks off the holiday season shopping in USA. All the retailers and departmental stores offer bonuses and “door buster deals” but do not believe every thing you read or hear. Here is why:

• First of all, Black Friday is not Friday but Black Thursday because most of the retailers deals starts from the midnight of Thanksgiving and that is the best time for shoppers to shop.
• Many Black Friday shoppers believe that they would get better deals in the store but that is not true. Driving to the store costs your gas. If one store does not have a “particular product deal” other retailers might have it. If the store from which you are buying is not present in your state then it will save on sales tax this is very good for you if you are buying “large ticket” items.
• The best way to shop is shop online. If you enjoy standing in long cues then it is different but if you are looking for better options then go online. You will get same deals. You do not need to ruin your night’s sleep.
• It is true that some deals finish quickly but there are hundreds of other better deals. If you can not get a particular deal then do not worry, the Cyber Monday is right at the corner.
• It is true that Black Friday deals are best deals. Hence, you should start as quickly as possible.

Related article:

prweb.com

iPod and Video game are hot "Black Friday 2008" items

In a recent poll conducted by reputed American organization, Consumer Reports, it has been found out that more shoppers will be looking for bargains and deep discounts on products on the coming “Black Friday.” American economy is going through a tough time and people are going to spend less but that does not mean they would not go shopping. In fact, 26% of the respondents said that they would go out for shopping on Black Friday which is 5% higher from 2007. cbs4.com reports:

Fighting the crowds and hunting down those blockbuster deals may be a game for the young, the biggest percentage (36%) of those who are planning to hit the malls are between the ages of 18 and 34.

Compared to early years, holiday shoppers are not starting their shopping early. Of the total respondent, only 38% have started their shopping which was 43% in 2006. About 85% of the shoppers are going to hunt for electronic products. Compared to the last season, this is a 15% rise. Out of the total respondents, 46% want to go for video-game system and iPods and 43% will go for MP3 players.

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cbs4.com

Black Friday 2008: The Ultimate Retail War

“Drastic nature calls for drastic measures” this best describes the condition of American retailers. With gas price rise (though it has come down now) and economic crisis, American retailers are expecting a grim “Black Friday 2008” and they are using every last trick in their books to attract consumers even if it means opening up stores at 12 a.m at midnight. For the past few days, I have been covering on Black Friday and I found out that many large retail chain stores are planning to open up a larger portion of their stores at midnight. For example, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) will open up its 100 stores from midnight and the rest 100 from 5 a.m. Same goes for KB Toys, Inc., the largest mall-based specialty toy retailer. Out of its 460 stores, 270 will open up from midnight. Atlanta Journal Constitution reports:

Other retailers are giving away door prizes to early shoppers, all in reaction to economic conditions that analysts say will turn the cheery —- and impressionable —- holiday shopper of Christmas past into a steely-eyed bargain hunter.

“This year, consumers are on a budget, and they mean it,” said National Retail Federation spokeswoman Ellen Davis.

Sales predictions range from downright dire to the modestly glum, and retailers are feeling the pressure, said Candace Collett, a principal with WSL Strategic Retail, a consulting firm.

However, keeping the doors open from midnight is not enough. Aggressive advertising, deep discounts, bonus, door buster deals are going to make a lot of difference in the coming holiday season shopping. Already some of the retailers gave away their special price listings such as Michigan based Meijer gave out their list which contains special prices of 400 items. In addition, some retailers are sending out e-mail alerts. For example, Simon Property Group, Inc

(NYSE:SPG) that operates Discover Mills and other malls are sending out e-mail alerts.

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Atlanta Journal Constitution

Meijer's Black Friday 2008 shopping deals

Stores of the famous Michigan based retailer, Meijer, will remain all through the day of the “Black Friday.” The retailer released its entire special pricing list to catch as many customers as possible on the upcoming “Black Friday.” Jeff Handler, Senior Vice President Marketing, Meijer, said that the ongoing economic crisis has forced people to spend more time to search for the best value in retail and Meijer always strives to provide the best customer service. Mr. Handler said that this year, their aim is to help customers plan their shopping trips and get the best price in the market.Marekt Watch reports:

• Save $420 on a Sylvania 32 inch High Definition LCD TV, selling for only $379.99.
  
• Purchase a new iPOD Nano for $149.99 and receive a $50.00 mail-in rebate.
  
• Select Blu-ray movies only $9.99.
  
• All Lego Bionicle playsets: Buy One Get One FREE
  
• All Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Disney Cars or Speed Racer single pack vehicles: Buy One Get One FREE
  
• 75% off all 10 and 14 karat gold jewelry.
  

Meijer released three different holiday ads to make easy for its customers to find out the best deals. From November 19, 2008 to November 22, 2008, customers can find these ads at the Meijer official website: http://www.meijer.com/home.jsp . On top of the homepage, there is a link titled “Ads, Sales & Alerts,” which gives the customers a list of 400 specific items with special holiday prices. Prices of some products have been slashed more than 50%. The wish-list items include electronics, jewelry and toys. 

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Marekt Watch

 

Maritz predicts not so exciting Black Friday 2008

Just another grim prediction for the upcoming “Black Friday” to boost retailers’ morale.  Famous travel and marketing research firm, Maritz conducted an online poll on 1,525 respondents on holiday shopping, buying behaviors and gift giving trends from October 14 to October 24, 2008. Here are the some of the findings of the poll: 

The retailers which are going to see the highest number of buyers are: Wal-Mart, Target, Best Buy, Toys R Us, K-Mart, Kohl's, Sears, Macy's,Circuit City, Victoria's Secret, and Apple Store/iTunes. People are willing to go for big-box retailers because they have the capability to offer competitive prices and comes with a wide range of product choice which makes their stores a “one-stop shopping” center. Buyers are going to choosier. These stores should go for value added benefits like free shipping or any other value added services to ensure their profit.           

Retailers are not gathering up items in fear of inventory build up. Hence, there is a good chance a shoppers might not get everything in one store. However, in order to be competitive, retailers should have a good stock of gift cards, though the projected spending on gift card per people has decreased. Market Watch reports: 

According to the poll, 55 percent of respondents still plan to purchase gift cards this year (compared to 56 percent in 2007 and 54 percent in 2006). The number of gift cards purchased will also remain the same as last year (with a median of four gift cards each year). But the true difference is in the amount spent on each gift card. The average spend on gift cards dropped to $161 from $273 in 2007. Based on the projected overall spend this holiday season, approximately 29 percent of gift giving will involve gift cards, compared to 43 percent last year.

 

Four out of five respondents said that they bought items only when they find a sale. Three out of four respondents are doing pre-shopping research to get the best deals. Seven out of ten already purchased gifts before the season and 65% respondents admitted to cut back the number of gifts per person.   

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Market Watch