Black Thursday/Friday Debriefing Thread 2018

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

I did visit the swamp today and spend a few bucks. Ran into very few people I recognized. One told me he was running on 10 hours of sleep total in 2 days. The other said the swamp's 2 pm opening yesterday was a bust and today was the busiest it ever got.

New to the swamp for this year's blowout: a couple of rent-a-cops stationed at the front doors.

[Food Lady]

JC Penney opened at 2:00 also. That makes me angry. Why even pretend to have any semblance of decency? Why not stay open all Wed. night and the next 4 days so the employees have no chance of a holiday at all? It would be more honest.

[Trixie]

I went into work at 4 today and it was just like any other Friday. Which for us lately has been slow. A girl that worked yesterday said it was pretty steady. We had shit on sale so no door busters for us. Decent sale on toys but I don't think it was limited to the last three days and was all week. Our photo department wasn't even busy.

Had a woman come up to me tonight asking about a 1 cent photo deal. I pretty told her she was nuts until she showed me an email. My coworker checked her phone and sure enough she got it too. Then I checked mine and yup. They were offering 25 photos for 25 cents only through the email and only for two days. The sucky part is...there was nothing in the list of specials we print out every month that mentioned it. And I'm sure we'll have a lot of people angry when they try to use in on the app or in the store because it's only through the website. I wish they'd get their shit together with the sales.

[Dreamstalker]

Yesterday was a MADHOUSE....we had 4 pallets of stock in the back but after 10AM or so we couldn't get a cart to the floor (it doesn't help that our carts are both falling apart and one was put together badly to begin with so is a hazard when loaded). The entire store opened at 9; usually the front sandwich/coffee bar opens at 7 but not this time...we had people pressed against the door/gawking in at 7:05. We are not the only coffee in the mall.

A CW has some anxiety disorder and it almost got triggered by the crowds a couple times...even though the warehouse was OSHA-violation cold, we just hid back there and organized when things got too nuts. Hey, if we can't physically move on the floor anyway...might as well do something useful. In this season we really need two people on the floor and at least one in the warehouse (organizing/building carts for those on the floor).

TW got on the warehouse manager's bad side; one of the quick-service areas came to him in the afternoon needing paper goods...he ignores the request and when the poor guy finally came back there himself to get the stuff TW goes off on him cursing and yelling about how "yall gotta tell us what you need by 9AM" (how the hell are they supposed to predict exactly what they'll need all day?). Manager overheard the end of this, pulled TW out into the hallway and gave him an earful.

[Food Lady]

A CW has some anxiety disorder and it almost got triggered by the crowds a couple times

I wonder if managers even understand this. I don't have a disorder but I have had panic attacks in my sleep. From what I understand, with anxiety disorder the reaction is a real, physical reaction you can't control and I do know what that's like because that's what happens with my night terrors. It's elevated heart rate which in itself is frightening. You feel like you can't breathe. The fight or flight kicks in and you want to run. I actually do run because I'm at home when it happens. It's different than my crowd issues which involve being emotionally heightened but no real physical symptoms. The people with the disorders have a medical condition, not just an aversion to crowds which is my thing. I wish they could get out of working BF with FMLA or something but I don't know if it would be approved.

[notalwaysright]

To give the Fabric Store credit, they've always been closed on Thanksgiving Day, and say so in the flyer. They haven't decided to open on Thanksgiving like too many other stores do now.

My store would have a potluck in the break room for the employees. It was excellent; we didn't have to go out and fight through crowds (just had to fight through the crowds in the store to get to the break room!), there was always a variety of very tasty food and more than enough to satisfy everybody. Good food does much to improve employee morale on the most insane day of the year. And you're right, splitting Black Friday between two days definitely helped with crowd control. Then we had the insanity of the Saturday-only sales!

True, I always sort of wondered if one year they would decide to be open on Thanksgiving. I know for a fact that my old store would lose about half of the staff, easily. I mean, college kids go home for Thanksgiving (and we're a college town, so many employees are students) and they couldn't care less if they had to find another job. And the other ladies probably host Thanksgiving, and let's face it, it's not like you make a huge amount of money so many could afford to walk out.

We had potlucks, too, and they were great! At my new work they hardly ever do anything like that, I'm this lone crazy person bringing food. Some of the warehouse guys that I don't know refer to me as "the girl who brings the cookies" so that's good I guess?

I bought a few things online, but did not venture out on BF. It seems like the hype is gone, at least from people I know.

[MoonCat]

I never did go out on Friday; started a cold on Thursday, and Friday I felt like shit, plus why spend bus money if I don't need to?

Food Lady, re: panic attacks - yes. They engage your whole body. Mine make me want to run or at least walk, as though I could physically get away from what's in my head. My heart rate goes up, and I become convinced I'm having a heart attack, or am about to. It's terrifying, and no amount of slow breathing or calming thoughts makes it stop. I just have to ride it out.

[Dreamstalker]

I don't have panic attacks per se, but when it's hyper-busy at work I know that I have X that must get done but I know I can't because of the crowds so I tend to fall back on trying to do whatever part I can that avoids the crowds.

I'm also a wolf therian, which can make being in large disorganized crowds interesting.

[Bandit]

Don't worry, we'll be infecting you as well. We've already got Canada, who celebrates their own Thanksgiving holiday in mid-October.

I was just in Madrid and they have also been infected with Black Friday/Black Week in the stores there. Mostly the big chains, but still was a little bizarre to see.

That said, being able to get a beer with a Big Mac is a sign of civilization.

B

[Gravekeeper]

Hey, on the upside I don't think(?) I saw any employee fatalities in the news this year. Granted, I could be wrong.

I never have and still do not understand Black Friday. Especially these days when there's no point in leaving your house to purchase anything. I find this really helps when you have a seething hatred of the general public that pulsates within your broken, void adjacent heart like a spiritual cancer.

....<cough>

[nutraxfornerves]

I was just in Madrid and they have also been infected with Black Friday/Black Week in the stores there. Mostly the big chains, but still was a little bizarre to see.

From a column in today's San Francisco Chronicle

...from a friend who lives in Barcelona, Spain: “It’s crazy. Stores here are advertising their Black Friday sales, but we don’t even have Thanksgiving.” The newspaper La Vanguardia even advertised a special deal: “Es momento de disfrutar de los mejores precios y las grandes ofertas de esta semana de BLACK FRIDAY.”

[prjkt]

Australia’s been hit too
15% off everything at my camera shop all weekend
Working at the busiest store of the city (CBD)
Quite busy, and then had a glass cabinet door explode all over me (several cuts to my hand)

[AkaiKitsune]

I work at a grocery store and so we don’t really have a ‘Black Friday’ in the traditional sense but we get everyone who goes shopping for Black Friday come through the doors... then when you thought Black Friday couldn’t be get worse.... they did a SpEcIaL PrOmO for our rewards program. I nearly cried walking in the doors and looking at the BS that was going on. It was like the zombie apocalypse happened and everyone was getting stocked up with food so they wouldn’t have to face the hoards later on... (alternatively known as Pre-Winter/Christmas rush in Canada)

[Sandman]

I PA'ed/stat'ed 30 hockey games for kids from 6-7 yo through u12. Made close to $400. The little kids were cute to watch. Felt bad for some of the teams that got trounced. Last game was INSANE! Went to OT4 (which in this tournament was 2 v 2).

[Mental_Mouse]

My used-book store had a busy and profitable Black Friday.