What's open and when on Black Friday in Sarasota-Bradenton?
Whether you decorate for Christmas the day after Halloween or curse radio stations that play "Jingle Bells" on Nov. 1, there's no question that Thanksgiving and Black Friday represent the official kickoff of the holiday shopping season.
And although holiday shopping coupons have been showing up in our mail slots and inboxes for what feels like months at this point, there's still something fun about going to a physical store during the holidays -- whether it's for buying or just for the spectacle.
Whatever your take on Black Friday is, here's some information about where you can shop – and when – on Thanksgiving and the day after.
Thanksgiving Day
Most big-box stores, including Target, Walmart and Best Buy, will be closed on Thanksgiving. This is a business practice that started with COVID-19 and has since become good public relations for corporate retailers. Since the pandemic, lots of big-box stores have tried to appear more worker-friendly – Target, for example, said it's offering "flexible scheduling" and starting seasonal workers at $15-$24 per hour this holiday season.
Stores that will remain open on Thanksgiving include Big Lots (7 a.m.-9 p.m. at both Sarasota locations) and Dollar General, which said stores in most states plan to be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Thanksgiving day. CVS said that its 24-hour pharmacy locations will be open regular hours on Thanksgiving, but non-24 hour pharmacies will close at 5 p.m.
"We’d recommend calling ahead to your local store, or visiting cvs.com to confirm pharmacy hours," Mary Gattuso, the company's senior manager of corporate communications, said.
Publix will be closed, as is tradition, but if you're making dinner and realized you forgot something, you can still make a run to either Sarasota Whole Foods between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Black Friday
The Black Friday messaging from some of the nation's largest retailers is mostly about weeks-long deals, making specifics about which stores are open and when a little hard to find. The most up-to-date information can be found on the store-specific pages for the area's local big-box stores.
Read more: Holiday shopping in 2022: What can we expect?
Walmart customers in the Sarasota-Bradenton area – from Palmetto to North Port – can shop in-store on Black Friday from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Most Target stores will open at 7 a.m. on Black Friday, according to the company.
If you want a really early start, on Friday, GameStop opens at University Town Center at 5 a.m. Then you can hop over to Bed Bath & Beyond, Dick's Sporting Goods and Ulta Beauty which open at 6 a.m. across Sarasota, Bradenton and North Port. Barnes and Noble opens at 8 a.m., according to its website, and the Mall at University Town Center opens at 9 a.m.
The Sarasota and Bradenton Costco locations also open at 9 a.m., but JCPenney, which is just steps away from the Sarasota Costco, will open at 5 a.m.
Macy's opens at 6 a.m. at both the Mall at University Town Center and the Crossings at Siesta Key.
The verdict
Thanksgiving shopping pretty much disappeared when COVID hit, but there are still plenty of stores opening early on Black Friday to get your annual fix. Any shopping plaza in the area with big-name tenants will likely be good spots for both shopping and people watching.
And for those who are bummed about not being able to shop on Thanksgiving, don't despair. This will give us all the opportunity to focus on what Thanksgiving is really all about seeing who can eat the most pie.
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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Here's what stores are open and when on Thanksgiving and Black Friday
