Add last-minute holiday shopping to the list of stuff getting the boot thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. Some big retailers are kicking off shopping now to try to avoid big crowds inNovember and December.

Stores like Best Buy, Macy’s, and Target typically offer their biggest Black Friday deals over Thanksgiving weekend, but now they’re starting them in October so people don’t crowd their stores later, creating a potentially dangerous situation during a pandemic.

And with more people expected to shop online, retailers are trying to avoid a rush of orders closer to Christmas, which could lead to late packages and more expensive shipping. Many had a hard time keeping up with the surge in buying when shoppers were locked down in their homes during the early days of the pandemic. Even Amazon, which has spent 25 years building warehouses and a delivery network, had to hire an additional 175,000 workers to meet demand.

Thanksgiving Day doorbusters are canceled. There will still be in-store sales the day after Thanksgiving, but companies are expected to try to steer many shoppers to their websites to avoid crowds and chaos.  Amazon will get it’s first holiday push on Prime Day October 13th…the first time they have done it this close to the holidays. Target and Walmart are doing something similar during that time. Best Buy will offer big deals in October too.

Looks like shoppers are down for it as Kohl’s said shoppers have started searching for stocking stuffers and matching family pajamas on its website.

 

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