Black Friday creep -- the trend in recent years for stores to push their big sales earlier and earlier into Thanksgiving Day -- has attracted its fair share of detractors, but it’s also racked up revenue for the stores that participate.
Now, one retailer is taking a stand against the frenzied shopping rush that has come to characterize the season. Outdoor and sporting goods retailer R.E.I. has announced that it will be keeping all its stores closed on Black Friday.
Related: The 10 Worst Things to Buy on Black Friday
The retailer may be the only chain in the country not open that day. Instead, it’s giving employees a paid day off and urging them and customers to #OptOutside and spend the busiest shopping day of the year outdoors rather than fighting the crowds at the mall.
R.E.I. will not run any online promotions or process online sales on Black Friday, either. CEO Jerry Stritzke acknowledged to CNNMoney that the decision would likely mean lost revenue for the year. The chain is a “consumer co-op,” so rather than shareholders, member consumers pay a fee and receive an annual dividend.
Last year, nearly 87 million Americans hit the stores or did holiday shopping online on Black Friday, according to the National Retail Federation. More than 40 million people said that they shopped on Thanksgiving Day.
A new report from DealNews finds that Thanksgiving Day often offers even better deals than Black Friday, but only about 53 percent of shoppers leave their turkey dinner to go shopping.
