Stores, shoppers adapt to new Black Friday strategies
JACKSON, Tenn. — Everybody knows that Black Friday is going on and you can find deals just about anywhere.
This includes Academy Sports + Outdoors in Jackson. Store Director Steve Johnson talks about why Jackson has been a great location for them.
“Well you know, Jackson is a city kind of in a bunch of towns,” Johnson said. “We have a large draw with a lot of retailers that are here that aren’t within an hour away from us. We have all the stuff that you just can’t get in those other small towns, so there’s a lot of draw. The exercise equipment that we have, the named brand apparel, the Nike the Under Armor, the Addidas. We have stuff here you just can’t get in other places.”
We all have seen the changes that have happened over the last few years with Black Friday. It is no longer just a one day event. Johnson talks about how Academy has been doing their sales.
“Black Friday starts earlier,” said Johnson. “After COVID, we stopped coming in on Thanksgiving. A lot of retailers did. Our ads start, usually, four or five days earlier. But we do have doorbusters, so pay close attention to what’s in the ad today.”
We were also able to catch up with some shoppers who say they have been Black Friday shopping for quite a few years. They talked about the differences they have seen since the days of the Black Friday craziness seem to be behind us.
“Well number one, you can’t do it on Thanksgiving anymore like we were before COVID,” one shopper told us. “We would always get out at 6 o’clock on Thanksgiving night and start Black Friday shopping. Shop all night and then start the next morning too. And there don’t seem to be as many people.”
Johnson also mentioned to us that the change makes it a little bit easier on the retail workers. He says they get pretty much the same sales, without as much of the foot traffic.
One thing that is always good to remember is to be patient with the retail workers. They spend many hours getting the stores prepared for the big sales that occur
SEE ALSO: Hub City businesses prepare for Black Friday, share what deals to expect
