Macy’s is the latest store to announce it will open all of its namesake stores at midnight following Thanksgiving for the first time. The opening is four hours earlier than last year. The Macy's stores, which number more than 800, will stay open for 23 hours straight and close at 11 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 25.
Retailers have expanded their Black Friday hours each year, and they’re also trying to outdo each other by publicizing some of the deals weeks in advance. They also are responding to shoppers who map out bargain-hunting strategies weeks in advance.
The Internet and social media are making print products obsolete with its vastly decreased circulation. The season kickoff stretched into Thanksgiving Day last year, when most Sears and Kmart stores opened Thanksgiving morning for the first time. Toys R Us stores opened at 10 p.m. Many Gap Inc. stores were open. And Wal-Mart, many of whose stores already operate around the clock, opened most other stores by midnight Thanksgiving evening.