1162 replies to this topic

[HanShotFirst]

Well Len, I had to work so yep, you win the prize for sure in my book.  Lol

[momlori]

Happy Black Friday everyone

[ilikefree]

Another successful day of Black Friday shopping in the books!

[Hartcollectibles]

I’m in for November!!!

[HomeinKS]

Happy November all!!!!!

[Kash]

I accidently broke into a business this morning.

I am having some work done on my car next week. The shop is five miles from my home. I figured I could catch some dry weather for my walk home if I got there right when they opened. I arrived at the shop just a little after 8:00, parked my car, and walked in the front door. While the lobby was lit, the office area was dark. I heard an alarm. I assumed the person opening was a little late. After waiting for someone for a couple minutes, I left the building and walked around to the service area. Looking in the window, it was completely empty and kind of dark. I returned to the office, left my keys at the desk with a note. I also called their number and left a voice mail explaining that I had walked into their unlocked office, left my keys, and left locking the door behind me (didn't want someone else to walk in, grab my keys, and steal my car, right?

As I was walking home, I heard sirens, so I returned to the scene of the crime. As I approached the police, I raised my hands over my head and confessed to setting off the alarm. They ran my license and sent me on my way.

Anyone have a more interesting Black Friday than me?

Thanks for the laugh! Hopefully, they do amazing work on your car.

[len_mullen]

Thanks for the laugh! Hopefully, they do amazing work on your car.

 

They better, huh?  Actually, these guys guarantee all work for life.  A year after a past repair, I lost a clip holding a fender panel to the rest of the car.  He noticed it this visit and said he'd repair under warranty.

[len_mullen]

In case you are wondering why there is so little excitement on these forums on our most exalted weekend of the year, it's inflation.  Some (raising my hand) have been aware of the lack of good deals for a long time.  Others just figured this out when the ads arrived.  The media is only figuring this out as they try to explain a VERY lackluster Black Friday.

 

from Bidenflation Friday: Shoppers Expected to Pay Up to 17% More For Toys, Clothing, TVs, and Other Gifts (breitbart.com)

 

Prices of toys, clothing, electronics, computers, and televisions are expected to be between five and 17 percent higher this year than last year. That’s because discounts are being put on prices already pushed higher because of inflation.  Also, retailers not discounting as deeply as they have in the past. Many items that in the past might have been marked down 50 percent or more will see 20 percent off sales this year.

 

Televisions, which had been falling in price for years, are up sharply this year. The Labor Department said its index of consumer prices for televisions is up 10.4 percent compared with last year.

 

Overall, consumer prices on durable goods are up 13.2 percent compared with 12-months earlier. Clothing prices are up 4.3 percent. Jewelry is up 7.5 percent. Computers, tablets, and smart home assistant prices are up 8.4 percent.

 

AP reports...

 

Buoyed by solid hiring, healthy pay gains and substantial savings, customers are returning to stores and splurging on all types of items. But the spike has also resulted in limited selection across the board as suppliers and retailers have been caught flat-footed.

 

Shortages of shipping containers and truckers have delayed deliveries while inflation continues to creep. The combination of not finding the right item at the right price — in addition to a labor shortage that makes it more difficult for businesses to respond to customers — could make for a less festive mood.

 

At Macy’s Herald Square store in Manhattan, shelves were stocked and shoppers were steadily streaming in at 6:30 am, a half-hour after the doors opened.

 

Aniva Pawlowski got to Macy’s just ahead of the 6 a.m. opening with plans to buy shoes and coats. Shopping on Thanksgiving Day had been a family tradition, but she stayed home last year and just shopped online. Worries about shortages drove the New Yorker to shop in person and she plans to spend about $1,000 on holiday shopping, similar to years past, even though she’s concerned about rising costs for gas and food.

 

“Everything is expensive,” she said.

 

Shoppers are expected to pay on average between 5 percent to 17 percent more for toys, clothing, appliances, TVs and others purchases on Black Friday this year compared with last year, according to Aurelien Duthoit, senior sector advisor at Allianz Research, with the biggest price increases on TVs. That’s because whatever discounts available will be applied to goods that already cost more.

 

“I think it is going to be a messy holiday season,” said Neil Saunders, managing director at GlobalData Retail. ”It will be a bit frustrating for retailers, consumers and the workers. We are going to see long lines. We are going to see messier stores. We are going to see delays as you collect online orders.”

 

Big retailers have been preparing for the holiday season, trying to find workarounds to supply chain hold-ups. Some of the biggest U.S. retailers are rerouting goods to less congested ports, even chartering their own vessels.

 

“We are deep and we are ready,” Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette told The Associated Press, noting inventory levels are up 20 percent compared to last year. “We are in good shape.”

 

While Black Friday has a stronghold on Americans’ imaginations as a day of crazed shopping, it has lost stature over the last decade as stores opened on Thanksgiving and shopping shifted to Amazon and other online retailers. Stores diluted the day’s importance further by advertising Black Friday sales on more and more days.

 

The pandemic led many retailers to close stores on Thanksgiving Day and push discounts on their websites, starting as early as October. That’s continuing this year, although there are deals in stores as well.

 

Still, some experts believe Black Friday will again be the busiest shopping day this year.

 

Crowds at Macy’s were higher in the first few hours of their 6 a.m. opening compared with last year, while online sales were strong, CEO Gennette said.

 

Carol Claridge of Bourne, England, has been coming to New York for Thanksgiving-week shopping for 15 years, but skipped it last year because of the pandemic. The U.S. reopened to travelers from the U.K. earlier in November when it lifted pandemic travel bans.

 

“We had to wait a long time to do this,” said Claridge, who was looking at beauty gift sets on the first floor of Macy’s with a friend. “We are picking up anything we see that we like. We call it our annual shopping outing.”

 

U.S. retail sales, excluding auto and gas, from this past Monday through Sunday are expected to increase 10 percent from last year and 12 percent from the 2019 holiday season, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which measures overall retail sales across all payment types. Sales on Black Friday are expected to surge 20 percent from a year ago as store traffic comes back.

 

Online shopping remains huge, and sales online are expected to rise 7 percent for the week after the massive 46 percent gain a year ago, when many shoppers stayed home, according to Mastercard. For the overall holiday season, online sales should increase 10 percent from a year ago, compared with a 33 percent increase last year, according to Adobe Digital Economy Index.

 

For the November and December period, the National Retail Federation, the nation’s largest retail trade group, predicts that sales will increase between 8.5 percent and 10.5 percent. Holiday sales increased about 8 percent in 2020 when shoppers, locked down during the early part of the pandemic, spent their money on pajamas and home goods.

 

 

 

AP is lying.  Fret not.  This is a good cycle for savvy consumers.  Unable to unload merchandise at inflated prices on BF, retailers will slash prices between now and Christmas in order to achieve Blackness.

[Kash]

They better, huh? Actually, these guys guarantee all work for life. A year after a past repair, I lost a clip holding a fender panel to the rest of the car. He noticed it this visit and said he'd repair under warranty.

That’s the kinda place I like!

Also, I like you, had been buying presents for awhile( just incase of no supply).

[Gator Pam]

For those with Facebook, here's me lighting first night candles last year...

Happy Hanukkah!
https://m.facebook.c...391364&sfnsn=mo

[mgreen]

I keep telling my sister to post for Novmeber so she can join....She better hurry !

[stevierocks]

im pretty sure i checked in , but in case i didn't, here's to November. 

not sure if i feel ahead of the game or behind. 

the shopping for the prizes for the class of 2022 are almost all bought.  doing pretty well on getting the kids stuff. .. but i feel like i missed BF shopping quite a bit this year.  and i dont have breaking into a business for an excuse to be behind.

[len_mullen]

from Black Friday shopping in stores drops 28% from pre-pandemic levels (cnbc.com)

• Traffic at retail stores on Black Friday dropped 28.3% compared with 2019 levels, as Americans shifted more of their spending online and kicked off their shopping earlier in the year
• On Thanksgiving day, visits to brick-and-mortar stores cratered 90.4% from 2019 levels
• Online, retailers rang up $8.9 billion in sales on Black Friday, down from the record of about $9 billion spent on the Friday after Thanksgiving a year earlier
• On Thanksgiving day, consumers spent $5.1 billion on the internet, flat from year-ago levels
• Traffic was up 47.5% compared with year-ago levels [but sales are only expected] to rise between 8.5% and 10.5%, for a total of between $843.4 billion and $859 billion o  [and] On Thanksgiving day, consumers spent $5.1 billion on the internet, flat from year-ago levels -- first time ever that growth reversed from the prior year

No surprise that no one went to closed businesses on Thanksgiving, but many did not go out Black Friday either.  Retail sale increases did not cover inflation and online sales were flat despite double digit inflation.

 

from Black Friday: How shoppers feel about prices, supply chain, inventory (cnbc.com)

 

52% of Americans said they won’t go shopping on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday, while 59% said they are not excited to go shopping on any of the three days, according to a new CNBC/Momentive survey.

 

from Holiday shopping 2021: More Americans won't be buying holiday gifts this year (cnbc.com)

 

This holiday, 11.5% of people plan to sit out the season by not spending anything on presents, gift cards or other items for entertaining, according to a survey by Deloitte. That’s a record amount of Americans on the sidelines, for as long as the consulting firm has been keeping track.

[magickallight]

[Bopeep]

My family surprised me with this quilt on Thanksgiving. It was my sister's idea (Doresia on here), and I guess they all got together to plan the layout and remove the stitches from the tshirts, then my daughter sewed it. I had no idea and was pretty excited about it .

[speeddiva]

My BF purchases have all shipped except for the BBW ‘Box’. I’m going to be seriously miffed if that doesn’t show.

I’ve spent more today than I did on BF. There are some great deals happening for Cyber Monday.

Edited by speeddiva, Nov 29, 2021 - 7:39 am.

[Cubsfan23]

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I wore my GottaDEAL shirt to my parents' house on Saturday. Everyone read my shirt and asked where I got it. I am so thankful for this website. It has helped me save a lot of money throughout the years.

[bluebear]

My family surprised me with this quilt on Thanksgiving. It was my sister's idea (Doresia on here), and I guess they all got together to plan the layout and remove the stitches from the tshirts, then my daughter sewed it. I had no idea and was pretty excited about it .

That is amazing.

[momlori]

My family surprised me with this quilt on Thanksgiving. It was my sister's idea (Doresia on here), and I guess they all got together to plan the layout and remove the stitches from the tshirts, then my daughter sewed it. I had no idea and was pretty excited about it .

Great quilt. I have some of the same shirts

[Gator Pam]

For Fun:
Type the word Hanukkah into google. On the far right you see a yellow menorah. Click on it. Then click on the Shamash (Middle candle) and light the other candles and stand back and enjoy!!
(works on the phone and the computer)

[HanShotFirst]

Bopeep, that quilt is awesome! 

[redeyejay]

I almost missed the first month!

[Mel1003]

Black Friday this year was pretty much a dud!  Want the old days back.    

[Brad]

Last day to sign up for the Prize Club!

[wittenlover]

Got some fresh filters for my kitties’ fountain with the PetSmart 25% off cyber deal. Win. Closing out November sitting on couch with Mew kitty curled up next to me.

[len_mullen]

Black Friday this year was pretty much a dud!  Want the old days back.    

 
Looks like CyberMonday sucked too.
 
from Cyber Monday online sales drop 1.4% from last year to $10.7 billion, falling for the first time ever (cnbc.com)

• Consumers logged online Monday and spent $10.7 billion, marking a 1.4% decrease from year-ago levels, according to data from Adobe Analytics.
• This year’s tally marks the first time that Adobe has tracked a slowdown in spending on major shopping days.
• Still, Adobe expects the entire holiday season will see record-breaking e-commerce activity, as shoppers spread out their dollars over more days.

The slight deceleration in online spending follows a similar pattern that played out on Thanksgiving Day and on Black Friday this year, as shoppers appeared to have spread out their dollars onto more days rather than squeezing their shopping into “Cyber Week.” Some of that behavior has been encouraged by retailers, including e-commerce behemoth Amazon, that have been touting Black Friday-style deals since October.  

 

Stores were also a little less crowded on key shopping days this year versus pre-pandemic times, as retailers gave consumers less of a reason to line up outside the mall in the wee hours of the morning. Shopper traffic on Black Friday was up 47.5% compared with year-ago levels, but was still down 28.3% versus 2019

 

What happens next?  My iPhones are sitting at the Verizon store in Plaistow New Hampshire.  When I pick them up Christmas eve, Verizon will activate their numbers and my kids will no longer be able to make or receive calls on their AT&T phones.  If they figure this out, I will have to let them open one present Christmas Eve -- pajamas.  I will play mickey the dunce.

 

I have some filler shopping to do.  I have nine $100 bills for people I do not yet know I am buying gifts for...just need to buy nine cards for them.  I will load up on gift cards for stuff I like which would be a good gift for others I do not yet know if I am exchanging gifts with.  I have already assembled a Christmas dinner (because we did not eat home Thanksgiving).  We will eat that in January if I find out I am supposed to be somewhere else on Christmas day.

 

No shopping this weekend as I have to empty and clean the living room then set up the tree.  That will be nice.

 

I miss the days when I only had to get the good gift for the kids, assemble everything, and eat the cookies left for Santa.  I really do.

[Midnight55]

Happy December everyone I hope this month brings dreams and wishes for all and great health

[jstluvem]

Good bye November..hello December

[ytmomof4]

I know I’m a little late but things have been crazy here but I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving.
Our thanksgiving break was an eventful one and kinda sucked for my daughter. She somehow fell and literally broke her knee and stretched a ligament so now she is non weight bearing and on crutches again. Plus now we are waiting on the ct scan(which is today) to find out about surgery.

[deelite]

Happy December E1!