There are several changes in store for Black Friday shoppers this year to keep customers and employees safe on what is traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic means shopping in person for Black Friday deals will look different than in the past. All retail stores, including the Greenwood Park Mall, Target and Walmart will be closed Thanksgiving Day for the first time in years.
Stores opening late Thursday for Black Friday sales became a tradition in recent years, but that won’t happen this year due to safety concerns, stores say. Most stores will open Friday morning, and many are encouraging online shopping and curbside pickup.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention classified “shopping at crowded stores just before, on or after Thanksgiving” on a list of high-risk activities to avoid and recommended shopping online this year.
Betsy Swearingen, director of the Johnson County Health Department, doesn’t discourage shopping in person this year, as long as people follow social distancing guidelines, wear masks and limit the amount of time they spend in one place, she said.
“You can in-person shop, as long as you are consciously aware of your surroundings and the people around you. You absolutely can,” Swearingen said.
She pointed out the county health department received few complaints about retail stores not following COVID-19 safety protocols.
The Greenwood Park Mall will open its doors at 6 a.m. Black Friday, as usual. Mall staff will monitor the number of customers inside, and follow its already-established COVID-19 safety procedures, including one-way walkways, markers for social distancing and enhanced cleaning. Masks are required.
At Target, doors will open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday. Inside, employees will follow the store’s usual safety procedures, which include cleaning carts after each use, Plexiglas barriers at registers, monitoring the number of guests inside and added markers to encourage social distancing. Masks are required inside for customers and employees.
This year, Black Friday shoppers are encouraged to order items ahead of time on the Target app for pickup outside the store, as many stores have doubled the pickup parking spots, according to a Target news release. For those who still want to shop in person, they can visit the store’s website at Target.com/line to reserve their spot to get into the store Friday. And contactless checkout is available through the store’s app.
In an effort to decrease crowd sizes on Black Friday, Target, along with other large retailers, began promoting holiday shopping deals all month, instead of the traditional one-day sale.
Walmart followed this trend with its “Black Friday Deals for Days” promotion. The store will open at 5 a.m. Friday. Customers will form a single-file line to enter the store. Associates will pass out sanitized shopping carts to customers to help with social distancing, and Walmart Health Ambassadors will be placed at entrances to greet customers and remind them to put on a mask, according to a Walmart news release.
Associates will use a meter to determine how many are allowed inside the store at one time to help reduce congestion and promote social distancing inside. Customers will be directed to shop down the right-hand side of aisles, the news release said.
Best Buy in Greenwood, another popular Black Friday spot, will also be closed on Thanksgiving, and open Black Friday from 5 a.m. to 11 a.m. The store will limit the number of customers inside, and place social distancing markers inside and outside, according to a Best Buy news release. Sanitizing wipes are available near high-touch tech areas, and masks should be worn while in the store.
Best Buy also offers curbside pickup for online orders, which are encouraged to keep customers safe, the news release said.
