Black Friday Thoughts
I had a question from a reader (howdy Ms. Shae!) about how Black Friday works at CVS & Walgreens.
I'm not going to lie, Black Friday sales at CVS and Walgreen's are fantastic! Whatever rush you get on an everyday shopping trip where you pay pennies for great stuff, multiply it times 10 for Black Friday. That being said, it can also be a terribly frustrating experience.
On a normal shopping trip to the drug stores, you may find yourself doing lots of small transactions to pay as little as possible out of pocket. You may also find yourself buying multiples of items because you can. Although those ideas are not necessarily bad ideas normally (unless you are clearing shelves and have multiple cards registered to you but even that's between you and your Maker...and the management) for Black Friday it's not quite the same.
Here are my thoughts:
1. Find the closest biggest city that has multiple CVS & Walgreens locations. That way, you have a pretty good shot at getting all of the items on your list.
2. DON'T FREAK OUT!!!! There is a good possibility that items will be sold out before you get there or that there will 10 people reaching for the same tube of toothpaste. No need to throw punches over some free toothpaste. There will be free toothpaste again another time.
3. Be considerate of others and try to condense your transactions into 1 or 2. Several stores in our area have gone to the 2 transactions or less rule on regular days and will not allow you to do more.
Here is what I'm going to do (I am anticipating a madhouse situation due to the popularity of the "Extreme Couponing"):
Have my list and coupons for each store ready to go the day before the sale.
Go in and buy what I can on my list with those coupons.
Get rain checks if possible.
Go home and enjoy my family.
The end.
I do not want the stress wrinkles of worrying about what other people are doing or whether or not they are shopping with integrity. I am planning to have blinders on and just do my shopping. (Oh, except for you Momma, I'll help you shop.)
Anyone else want to weigh in on the drug store Black Friday phenomenon?
I'm not going to lie, Black Friday sales at CVS and Walgreen's are fantastic! Whatever rush you get on an everyday shopping trip where you pay pennies for great stuff, multiply it times 10 for Black Friday. That being said, it can also be a terribly frustrating experience.
On a normal shopping trip to the drug stores, you may find yourself doing lots of small transactions to pay as little as possible out of pocket. You may also find yourself buying multiples of items because you can. Although those ideas are not necessarily bad ideas normally (unless you are clearing shelves and have multiple cards registered to you but even that's between you and your Maker...and the management) for Black Friday it's not quite the same.
Here are my thoughts:
1. Find the closest biggest city that has multiple CVS & Walgreens locations. That way, you have a pretty good shot at getting all of the items on your list.
2. DON'T FREAK OUT!!!! There is a good possibility that items will be sold out before you get there or that there will 10 people reaching for the same tube of toothpaste. No need to throw punches over some free toothpaste. There will be free toothpaste again another time.
3. Be considerate of others and try to condense your transactions into 1 or 2. Several stores in our area have gone to the 2 transactions or less rule on regular days and will not allow you to do more.
Here is what I'm going to do (I am anticipating a madhouse situation due to the popularity of the "Extreme Couponing"):
Have my list and coupons for each store ready to go the day before the sale.
Go in and buy what I can on my list with those coupons.
Get rain checks if possible.
Go home and enjoy my family.
The end.
I do not want the stress wrinkles of worrying about what other people are doing or whether or not they are shopping with integrity. I am planning to have blinders on and just do my shopping. (Oh, except for you Momma, I'll help you shop.)
Anyone else want to weigh in on the drug store Black Friday phenomenon?
I have NEVER shopped a black Friday and I don't intend to start. As a matter of fact, I try my darndest to not even have to venture to a gas station, let alone a grocery/retail store. The closest I came was working at Walmart one year and DG the next. It was horrible from that side of the picture. I can't imagine from the shopper's point of view. I don't care if there is an endless supply of free laptops.
ReplyDeleteI have friends and family that start planning their black Friday at the end of Summer. No way Jose! Ain't happenin.
I am a black Friday freak! My two friends and I have already ordered our "Black Friday Diva" t shirts and downloaded aps to our smartphones to help organize our trip! I haven't decided yet if I will hit up CVS but Walmart will be a sure thing! However, I'm not the least bit concerned with other people's transactions AND I'm going to make a concerted effort to get what's on my list.... but I'm not going to throw a fit or run anyone down with my buggy if I don't get something! No deal is worth an assault charge!
ReplyDeleteMs. Becky, I totally understand why you would not want to go out Black Friday. It is unbelievably crazy! I try to have all of my shopping done by the time it rolls around yet Engineer and I wake up at crazy o'clock in the morning and head out to different stores - never the same ones. We just like the rush and the hustle and bustle without the pressure of having to actually purchase anything. In fact, we usually stroll around with a Starbuck's in our hands and people watch mostly.
ReplyDeleteHowdy Ms. Kristan! I love the t-shirt idea!
ReplyDeleteI'm not much of a Black Friday shopper. I only go to stores when they carry prices I'd never find through the rest of the year. Free, or nearly free toothpaste isn't worth the stress. Now, the year Walmart had socks, pajamas, slippers, coats, and sleeping bags dirt cheap and my kids needed replacements for all of the above I was there with the masses 30 minutes before the sale started.
ReplyDeleteYou are right Ms. Kristin, you have to decide what is worth the stress.
ReplyDelete