Jacksonville stores prepare for Black Friday shoppers

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Thanksgiving dinner is over, now it is time to prepare to find the best holiday shopping deals.

After years of Black Friday sales beginning on Thanksgiving Day, many large retailers like Target and Walmart are now staying closed on Thursday. This first started because of COVID-19 precautions, but now stores are keeping their doors closed for good on Turkey Day.

For Walmart, it is a way to thank their employees.

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There are still some stores that are opening Thursday evening. GameStop is one of them. The gaming store is preparing to open its doors to the customers standing in line waiting to get the big-ticket items.

Carlo Sangiacomo was outside of GameStop Thursday afternoon waiting to get a Play Station 5 bundle.

When we asked him how much they are, he said, “[On the] Internet for $1,000, $1,200.″ But at GameStop, he said, “Well $700, but with three games, a membership and everything.”

Deals like that are what inspire holiday shoppers to get out early.

For others, the in-store deals aren’t worth the hassle.

We asked another shopper, Marquise, about Black Friday shopping and he said, “We used to [go out], but now we do it online because it’s easier.”

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Blackfriday.com says they are expecting $17 billion to be spent online on Black Friday sales this year.

For stores that are quiet tonight, it won’t last long.

Shoppers are planning on going out as early as 7 a.m. Friday to get the most bang for the buck.

Bailey Husker

Bailey Husker, Action News Jax

Bailey Husker is a digital content producer and assignment editor for Action News Jax.

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