Why Macy’s Will Open Its Doors On Thanksgiving Day, But Mall Of America Won’t

Macy’s made headlines earlier this month after announcing it would push up its opening hours on Thanksgiving Day to 5 p.m — an hour earlier than the year before. But the retailer’s decision to open its doors on the holiday is far from radical. Macy’s has consistently opened on Thanksgiving Day since 2013, as have many other big-box retailers. Over the last several years, competition between retailers like Wal-Mart, Kohl’s, Best Buy, Target and J.C. Penney has driven doorbuster promotions earlier and earlier — a phenomenon aptly known as “Black Friday creep.” Yet this year, many retailers are reversing course and plan to close on Thanksgiving Day. Mall of America, Office Depot and hhgregg are just a few that threw in the towel after previously opening on the holiday. In public statements, retailers said their motivation to close was to let employees enjoy the day off with their families. While that may be true, the reality is that opening on Thanksgiving may not make financial sense for most retailers anymore: The dilution of Black Friday as a single-day shopping bonanza has spread sales throughout the weekend, meaning that most specialty retailers won’t see significant gains from opening on Thanksgiving, according to Moody’s lead retail analyst Charlie O’Shea. Read more at Retail Dive.