In a first, Macy’s will open its department stores at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day, the retailer said Monday, hoping to get a jump on the traditional Black Friday shopping frenzy.
The annual lighting of the Macy’s Great Tree at Lenox Square mall in Buckhead will be moved up to 6 p.m. to accommodate the new shopping time, Macy’s spokeswoman Melissa Goff told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Macy’s was one of the few major retailers that didn’t open between 8 and 9 p.m. last year as other competitors tried to get a jump on the rush with holiday specials. Toys R Us, Wal-Mart, Target, Sears and Kmart were among the stores beginning Black Friday sales on the holiday last year.
Black Friday this year falls on Nov. 29. As of Monday, Macy’s was the only major retailer announcing an 8 p.m. opening.
The retailer, which has multiple locations around metro Atlanta at major malls, said it is opening stores across the country before midnight in response to interest from customers who prefer to start their shopping earlier.
In previous years, festivities for the Great Tree lighting usually began around 7 p.m., culminating with a major fireworks display at the mall, which is at the junction of Lenox and Peachtree roads. It wasn’t immediately known if Lenox mall will be opening at 8 p.m. on the holiday.
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