Best Friday-After-Thanksgiving Sales in St. Louis, MO

Many people mistakenly believe that Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is the most profitable day of the year for retailers. The truth is that while it may be the day that generates the most foot traffic, it’s actually the fifth most profitable day. The other four most profitable days are the two weekends directly preceding Christmas Day. In terms of revenue generated, the biggest day is either December 23rd or the last Saturday before Christmas. According to a study by Richard A. Feinberg, a professor of consumer science and retailing at Purdue University, the percentage of holiday sales are as follows:

Thanksgiving weekend: 8.5 percent

November 30th – December 7th: 13.7 percent

December 8th – December 12th: 18.3 percent

December 13th – December 19th: 25 percent

December 20th – December 24th: 24 percent

December 26th – December 31st: 11 percent

Now I have a few tips on how to make the most of your shopping day. If you’re going after the store has been open for an hour or so, when it is really crowded, take a couple of companions. Split your shopping list between them and one of you grab a cart and get in line. The others go off and select the purchases and bring them back to one in line. If everything is not chosen and in the cart as you get to the checkout, allow the person behind you to go ahead. They will appreciate it and you’ve gained some extra time for your companions to finish shopping for you.

If you can force yourself out of bed early, catch the early-bird specials offered by most of the bigger stores like Target, WalMart, JC Penney and Sears. They’re opening at 5 a.m. and offer even bigger discounts for shoppers that arrive between opening and late morning, with 10:00 or 11:00 a.m. being the cut off time. You can be finished with your shopping and heading for home before half the shoppers are even out of bed.