Kmart Holiday Hours Draw Outrage, Some Shoppers Plan to Boycott
With the holiday season already in full swing some retailers are staying open longer in the hopes more people will walk through their doors.
However, one retailer in particular is already enticing a backlash over their holiday hours after it was announced that Kmart will open its doors at 6 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day and will stay open through Black Friday.
Less than a day after news of the long holiday hours spread around the internet potential consumers took to social media to vent their frustration over what they see as employee exploitation. The move as even prompted some shoppers to say they would not step foot in Kmart during the holiday season.
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The move to open early and stay open late comes after less than stellar consumer confidence reports ahead of the holiday shopping season. It was also in part due to a calendar quirk that will see this holiday season lose six shopping days, according to a recent report from Adobe Digital Marketing.
A survey released Monday, from financial consulting firm BDO, concluded that retailers expect a 2.5 percent increase in holiday sales at stores open at least a year, which is far more pessimistic than last year's predictions.
"We're seeing retailers enter the holiday season with realistic, rather than optimistic, expectations," said Doug Hart, partner in BDO's retail division, in a statement.
Kmart officials decided to open the stores earlier this year after customer feedback indicated shoppers wanted more flexible shopping hours during the holiday.
"Kmart has been a destination for early-bird shopping and last-minute entertaining needs on Thanksgiving Day for 22 years," Kmart spokeswoman Shanelle Armstrong wrote in an email to The Huffington Post. "We staff with teams & seasonal associates when possible, giving them the opportunity to make extra money during holiday."
