mrstoots

Hey, thanks for the info! I'm in Mass too, usually shop in Ware, not too far from Westfield. Last year they opened at 1. Seems like it may be the same story this year. I haven't seen any signs at my local Wally's yet, but I'll keep an eye out this week! Again, thanks!

I've also gotten great deals on BF, 700 thread count sheets at Wally World for twenty bucks, plus the cheapo towells and washcloths! Best deal ever, though, had to be last year. Got my daughter that Loopz toy, which goes for close to thirty bucks at Toys R Us, for $5.00! Hoping for some great deals this year too!

I've noticed that Walmart tends to have the same things on sale year after year. For instance, the sheets. For the past few years they have had 500 count sheets on sale for $20.00. The only difference this year is that they are 700 count. Same thing with the towels and washcloths, the Rubbermaid sets, the PJ's, the Wrangler jeans for $9.50. They've been on sale on BF at WM for the past several years, all for about the same price. I know because I've bought them! See, I pretty much know what the basic stuff is that they'll have even before the ad leaks! lol!

I agree with everyone who feels it's crazy for WM (or any other store) to be opening so early on Thurs evening. At least in my state (Massachusetts) we have a law that prohibits the stores from opening on Thanksgiving. (however, I have seen CVS and Walgreens open on Thanksgiving...probably because they are pharmacies(?)). However, even with that, the WMs in MA are opening at 1:00 AM Fri morning, when they used to open at 4:00 AM the past few years and for years before then the store didn't open until 5 or 6. We have always shopped at WM when they opened at 4:00, we'd check out at 5:00 and head to the mall for 6ish. Well, I found out that even the mall is opening at 12:30 AM this year! So it looks like it's gonna be an allnighter for us! Hope the turkey does its job on Thanksgiving and lets me take a nap! I'll need it!

I was at my local Walmart in Leicester, MA tonight and saw they already have the BF hours posted at the registers. This particular store is opening at 1 AM! I'm curious to check out the other WM's in the area to see if they have signs at the registers also. Last week I was also glad to see they had some Christmas stuff out. And tonight they had even more stuff! All those cheesy, stupid musical animated reindeer and Santas, you know, the usual. Lots of glittery ornaments, if you're into that kind of thing.

In all the years I've been shopping on BF, I've never seen the police present at Walmart. The Wally World I shop in is in a small town. I figured maybe a fight had broken or something but then when I heard what had happened in CA and AZ, I figured maybe they were just being cautious...anywho... Wally World was a zoo as usual. The store was supposed to open at 4 am (I'm one of those blue law states!) but they let us in about 20 min early. Whoopie! By then I just wanted to get warm. Two things I hated: Like last year they had every damn aisle blocked off for the people wanting to get the big ticket items. The aisles are so small to start with, then you block off half of them so getting around is a real pain. Second, as usual none of the zillion Wally World employees standing around looking lost had any CLUE as to where anything was. I actually helped two other shoppers find items they were looking for! One woman asked two employees where the waffle makers were. I only knew where they were because I passed by them three times as I meandered up and down the aisle. One of the employees told her "it's probably around here somewhere", I pointed it out to her further down the aisle by saying "see the purple box"? Then another lady was looking for the Hanes zip hoodies and couldn't find them. Luckily I had found them and pointed them out to her. She was very grateful. There were some things I couldn't find: The Disney storybooks (could not find a balloon for this item, searched everywhere and asked two employees who were no help) and the blow up snowman was right where it should've been in the lawn and garden area but when I first went in there, they told me they were just doing TV's in there! I did go back and got the damn snowman. After a while I felt like I was on a friggin' scavenger hunt...who needs a map? They're no good anyway, since nothing is where it says it's going to be. One thing I found interesting was later Friday night I went to another Walmart and there were TONS of things left: big screen TV's, all the clothes they had on sale, the Rubbermaid sets. As for the rest of my BF experience, other than getting overly tired, it went quite well. Got a great parking spot at the mall, received an unexpected snowglobe just for walking in the door to JC Penney (I never shop there--just walked in to get into the mall!)

I would actually LOVE a midnight opening--if only my state of MA allowed that. I guess technically they COULD open at midnight, as TECHNICALLY it would officially NOT be Thanksgiving any longer, but nobody here has gotten that message yet...so we don't shop on Thanksgiving (which is fine with me) and our shopping starts at 4:00 am when Wally World opens...:):)

The Walmart I shop at does it pretty well. They hand out maps. For the past two years they have opened at 4:00 am so that allows us to get a coffee at the Dunks down the street and hop in line by 3:00 am. We're never there for any big ticket stuff, just some of the general stuff on sale (like 500 count sheets for $20.00 which I'm hoping they have again this year; and the $9.00 jeans). We shop for an hour, check out around 5:00 am when the prices go into effect, then it's off to the mall!

I noticed this same thing on the 40 piece Rubbermaid set that had been sold for $9.00. At my store they had it marked down to $7.00.

My Wally World experience was not the greatest experience as far as customer service goes. I did find it comical to learn that some fools (presumably (1) either from out-of-state, (2) people who live in Mass but don't know about the Blue Laws or(3) just ignorant people who didn't have the sense to call the store ahead of time) were standing in line since 10:00 p.m. when the store did not open until 4:00 a.m....heehee! Getting back to the customer service experience...or lack of... I don't know if Wally World just goes out and hires people off the street to stand around and block aisles in the store on Black Friday, but they sure as heck do not know where any of their merchandise is. All I wanted was Beautyrest 500 count sheets for $19.88. They were there alright. Sitting under a sign marked $39.00. So of course I didn't pay any attention to them b/c I was looking for a sign that said $19.88! Long story short, the sheets were scanned and I was assured they would ring up $19.88. Rubbermaid containers were right near the door when you walked in. Last thing I'm looking for as I'm being pushed towards a shopping cart... Where are the hoodies? I don't know, answers the not-so-knowledgeable employee. Then she moves only to reveal...duhduhduh...the hoodies sitting in a display that she was blocking with her big, fat butt!

All I know is that at my Walmart they have a sign on the door indicating their hours on the Wed before Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving (closed) and then on Friday it says they are open at 5:00. Since they had the same signs on the door last year and let us in at 4:00, I'm thinking history will repeat itself. In at 4:00, check out at 5:00. I also found it interesting when I was there on Friday that the toys that are listed in the toy catalog as going on sale starting Nov. 7 were already at the sale prices. I know some of them have been that price for a while (i.e., Barbie Swim Puppies) but I've been watching Baby All Gone (the one that eats and then does its business in the diaper---the one going for $29.97--) and I saw that it was going on sale for $24. On Friday I checked it out for kicks and was surprised (and ecstatic!) that it was already marked at that price! So of course I picked it up (there were only two there!)...

Last year our Walmart let us in at 4:00 a.m., I shopped for an hour (no problem allowing us to put stuff in carts) and I checked out at 5:00 a.m. I was in the car by 5:15 and on my way to the mall! It was GREAT! But I think the people waiting for the big ticket items were probably there until at least 10:00 because when I saw them in the lines right before I checked out at 5:00, they weren't moving. And the lines were not very organized. Everyone was just kind of standing around haphazardly, looking like they were waiting for SOMETHING... One thing I did hate were the ropes they used to block off entire aisles so if you started going down an aisle one way, you had to make a turn to get around to the other side!

I've been shopping all year. Sales, coupons, tax-free holiday has helped. I also started purchasing Walmart gift cards each week and hope to have at least $100.00 by BF. I'm planning on doing that again next year, starting in January

I was wondering when we might be hearing something regarding Wally World...bring it on!

For me it's a combination of tradition and the sales. My sister and I shop together and we have our rituals: morning coffee at Dunkin Donuts, then Walmart, off to the mall, get to Christmas Tree Shops first because they have 20% off your entire purchase until 9:00 am (you have to be in the store by then), Sears, FYE (for the past few years they've been having a buy one, get one free sale on DVD TV shows; I'm working on getting the entire MASH collection...only five more seasons to go!) and any other stores that strike my fancy...

With the way my family is, I have to shop year round. If I see something I know someone will want (i. e., things they collect, for example), and I have the cash, I get it. I do a lot of thrift store shopping. You never know what you're going to find there!

I have been Black Fridaying it since I was a teenager when I'd go out with my mother. Now I'm 40, Mom's passed so it's just me and my sister. For a couple of years we included our two younger sisters but they just got to be too much for us, with their bickering and fighting...so now it's just us 40 somethings!

I haven't stopped thinking about BF since LAST BF! Did get a lot of shopping done last weekend during tax free weekend in MA....and I've been purchasing gifts all through the year, a little here, a little there...I like the gift card ideas mentioned here...I might try that!

I agree. I was pleasantly surprised by how well it went. Other than a few people in line complaining about alleged "line cutters", all seemed to be fine. In fact, I hope they keep it like this. I was in the store at 4:00, was able to put everything in my cart (unlike what I thought was going to happen and I'd have to wait until 5:00), got all my shopping done and was ready to check out at 5:00! And there wasn't even a line to check out--probably because everyone was back in the electronics still waiting in line for a laptop or a TV! I went by that area and the line wasn't even moving. I'm still not sure what they were all waiting for. The only thing I didn't like was how the people in lines waiting for merchandise caused traffic jams in the aisles, making it difficult for "regular shoppers" after items other than the "big ticket" stuff to get through. I had to cut through the clothing department just to get to the area that had Swiffer pads! That's what I was after--Swiffer pads! And yes, they ARE an item on my sister's Christmas list! lol! Of course I wouldn't even want to think what it would've been like if there had been a fire...

I got one and actually when I left the store at 5:15 there were still plenty left!

Last year we got one as we were waiting in line to get in the store. I hope they do that again this year!

I've never seen anything roped off with yellow security tape, etc. in the past but that's probably because the store didn't open until 5:00 a.m. and the stuff was already set to go by the time I got in the store:). With the store opening at 4:00 this year, I'll just get my non-BF stuff in my cart first (I have a lot of nonBF stuff to get) and then I'll get the BF stuff at 5:00. Gee, this year I may be out of Walmart by 5:15! All that much sooner to get to the mall! lol!

Since my Walmart is opening at 4:00 I'll probably get there about 3:00 or so, after a Dunkin Donuts run, of course! Disappointed to see the map only lined out where the electronics would be and not more specifically the toys. Last year while in line an employee handed out maps highlighting every item that was on sale and where you could find it. It made it so much easier for me to find the toys they had on sale. But I have a feeling I already know where I can find them--probably where the toys were last year, right in the middle of the aisle. I noticed too that the electronics on sale at my Walmart are going to be located right in the most obvious place--in the electronics department! I'll be staying away from that area! lol!

That is a sweet story and I'm so glad you experienced it! If only more store managers would be like that, the world of retail would be a better place!:)

Ah, so that explains why the two stores nearest me have signs on their doors indicating they will be open at 4:00 a.m. on Friday. Then again, I spoke with a manager at one of these very same stores who told me they were opening at midnight; this tells me that apparently even the managers at some WMs have no clue what they're doing! :) Best of luck to all BF shoppers!