Black Friday was once so frenzied that major retailers opened their doors a day early on Thanksgiving to satisfy the crowds hunting for doorbusters.
When you can shop on Thanksgiving, Black Friday in the Twin Cities
From grocery stores to malls, there are few options open on Turkey Day but plenty of extended hours Black Friday.
November 23, 2023 at 2:36PM
That Christmas shopping tradition took a major hit during the pandemic as stores decided to stay closed on the holiday and discouraged crowds. This week, malls and big-name stores like Target, Walmart and Best Buy will be closed again on turkey day but will open their doors early on Black Friday in hopes of drawing deal hunters.
Other pandemic-era pivots were the disappearances of pre-dawn hours and long lines that many shoppers have come to associate with Black Friday. Now, many customers shop online deals that last pretty much the entire holiday week and venture to stores on Black Friday for the experience as much as the savings.
"Stores are not open on Thanksgiving Day," said Lori Zumwinkle, the North America retail industry lead for consulting company Accenture. "They're leveraging their digital capabilities and pushing that to have consumers shop, and then on Black Friday, you are starting to see the bigger turnout, and people come into the stores, and that's when they are providing ... special promotions. 'Hey, you've got to come into the store for it,' or creating some fun and excitement."
According to Circana's annual holiday survey, most consumers planned to start their holiday shopping before Thanksgiving while 18% said they would begin on Black Friday and 82% said they would shop online.
Here's an idea of what Twin Cities stores will be open — or not — this Thanksgiving and Black Friday (though, as always, check your desired store's hours ahead of time just to be sure.
Major retailers
Most stores started their Black Friday promotions online this week if not earlier.
- Target: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday. Special deals for Target Circle members.
- Walmart: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday. Special deals for Walmart+ members.
- Best Buy: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday. Special deals for My Best Buy Plus and My Best Buy Total members.
Malls
Of course, stores located within the Twin Cities' various shopping malls will have different holiday hours. But here's an idea of when to shop for the best deals in climate-controlled comfort.
- Mall of America: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.
- Southdale Center: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.
- Ridgedale Center: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday. Some of its anchor department stores will open earlier.
- Rosedale Center: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday.
- Eden Prairie Center: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.
- Twin Cities and Albertville Premium Outlets: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.
Department stores
- Nordstrom: Both Twin Cities locations are closed on Thanksgiving. The Mall of America store is open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday while the Ridgedale store is open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday. Nordstrom Rack will be closed Thanksgiving but open for extended hours Friday — 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Mall of America's Nordstrom Rack will be open during mall hours.
- Macy's: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday.
- Von Maur: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.
- JCPenney: Closed on Thanksgiving. Most locations open 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday.
- Kohl's: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 5 a.m. to midnight Friday.
Warehouses
While you have to have a paid membership in place to shop at these, there are plenty of deals online and in-store on everything from mozzarella sticks to TVs.
- Sam's Club: Closed on Thanksgiving. Normal holiday hours Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. for most members. Plus members can start shopping at 8 a.m.
- Costco: Closed on Thanksgiving. Open 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday.
Grocery stores
Forgot the cranberry sauce? There are only a few options for grocery stores that will be open on Thanksgiving, and most have limited hours. Some are also open later Wednesday night if you realize what you're missing before the turkey's in the oven.
- Cub: Most stores will be open 5 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Thanksgiving and will reopen at 6 a.m. Friday. The Quarry Minneapolis location, as an example, is open 5 a.m. to midnight Friday. Cub pharmacies, wine and liquor stores will be closed on Thanksgiving.
- Whole Foods: Most stores are open with modified hours on Thanksgiving, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Normal hours Friday.
- Fresh Thyme: Open 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday, usually 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. or 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Aldi: Closed on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday.
- Hy-Vee: Stores and pharmacies closed on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday.
- Lunds & Byerlys: Closed on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday.
- Kowalski's: Closed on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday.
- Trader Joe's: Closed on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday.
Pharmacies
If you need some Band-Aids for an unfortunate turkey-carving accident or maybe just some painkillers for the headache brought on by a rousing family political debate, your best bet is to search for a 24-hour pharmacy.
- CVS: All non-24 hour locations will close early on Thanksgiving. For example, the CVS store near the University of Minnesota Campus on Southeast Washington Avenue will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but the pharmacy will not be open. CVS pharmacies located inside Target stores are closed on Thanksgiving. Normal hours Friday.
- Walgreens: For the first time in the store's history, most locations will close on Thanksgiving day. Except for 24-hour locations, which will remain open as usual. Normal hours Friday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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