Thanksgiving. One of the greatest holidays of the year. Along with giving food, people are thanking for the food that was given. But after all of this thanking and giving, comes one of the most intense shopping experiences of the year: Black Friday.
Each year the night of Thanksgiving, after all of the eating has ceased, brave Americans with their credit cards ready, fill the shopping malls and department stores, hoping to snag up the deal of the century at a show-stoppingly low price.
But, Black Friday is not as simple as your normal shopping trip. It takes preparation, courage, determination and coffee. If you follow the steps listed below, you will become a champion Black Friday shopper.
When to leave: It is called Black Friday for a reason. It is still nighttime when the shopping begins. This year many stores will be opening at midnight, which is earlier than previous years. Try to take a power nap before hand, so you are fully energized and ready to go. Leave earlier, to give yourself time for a coffee stop.
How to dress: Do not worry about how you look. There is almost a guarantee that you will look ridiculous. It is going to be early in the morning, in the middle of fall. So, it is going to be very cold. For pants, wearing jeans under sweatpants allows both comfort and warmth. Do not wear flip flops. Wear Uggs or snow boots for warmth. If you are going to be running very quickly through the stores, than try to wear tennis shoes, which allow both comfort and speed. Bring hand warmers, gloves and a hat. You will be standing outside in lines for large periods of time, so it is vital that you dress warm.
Planning: Make sure you know what you are going to be looking for. Some helpful tips for different stores are listed below.
Wal-Mart:
When it opens: Midnight
What to shop for: Toys and movies
Game plan: Come early to stalk out the competition. Wal-mart price matches, so for example, if you see that Zhu Zhu Pets are a dollar cheaper at Toys-R-Us than they are at Wal-Mart, make sure you have the Toys-R-Us catalog with you to show the cashier the price difference, saving you a dollar and a trip to another store.
Target:
When it opens: Midnight
What to shop for: Electronics and toys
Game plan: Target is best with a group. The electronics counter is a jungle during Black Friday, so it is important to have a minimum of three people with you if you plan on attacking the electronics. One person needs to wait in line, one person needs to search for the electronics and the other person serves as the communicator so that the person waiting in line does not lose their spot.
Toys-R-Us
When it opens: Midnight
What to shop for: Toys and video games
Game plan: Toys-R-Us is in pandemonium during Black Friday. It is important that you are able to steer a cart with ease. Toys-R-Us has narrow lanes, which means large cart traffic jams. So make sure that you have one person to steer the cart and another person to walk on foot through cart jams. The video games and electronics area is always a large mosh pit of people. You need to be able to bob and weave through people if you plan on getting a Nintendo 3DS before the crazy housewife rams you in the knees with her cart.
Best Buy is a different story. If you plan on going to other stores, then do not go to Best Buy. People camp out in tents for multiple nights in order to get a good deal on a Mac. They are determined, and once you actually get into Best Buy, it looks like hundreds of bees swarming while holding a plasma t.v. Then you have to wait in a huge line for multiple hours that stretches all the way to the back of the store. Best Buy is for the elite, and not for a rookie shopper.
Remember these vital shopping tactics and you will be able to conquer the stress inducing, freezing cold and tiring experience that is Black Friday.
