Inflation-riddled 2022 has been hurtful to many of our wallets. Black Friday and its online counterpart Cyber Monday will offer consumers — and retailers — potential relief amidst an uncertain economy.
While prices will drop on certain products for the famous holiday shopping weekend, they may not seem as low as in years past. With similar discounts at higher prices, the year-over-year inflation rate of nearly 8 percent may take its toll on the holiday shopping season.
It’s no secret that Black Friday is no longer a one-day event. For some retailers, “Black Friday” has already begun and will extend well past Nov. 25.
Skip to: “Black Friday hours and deals at some of Springfield’s largest retailers”
2022 Black Friday projections
What retailers expect amid all the economic uncertainties
Retail sales growth is expected to rise 10 percent year over year during this week, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which provides retail data analytics.
“With supply chain challenges straining product availability, elevated inflation and consumers creating unprecedented demand for goods, this holiday season is shaping up to be a seller’s market for retailers,” the report says.
NerdWallet expressed optimism with the adjustments retailers have made in recent months. Additionally, Black Friday could provide an opportunity for retailers to offload excess inventory that also has plagued different sectors of the industry.
While other retailers across Springfield are offering their own Black Friday bonanzas, the Battlefield Mall has a high concentration of them, and is preparing appropriately for what could be their busiest day of the year.
“We can’t predict exactly what it’s going to be, but we are seeing everything to predict a healthy high-traffic holiday season,” said Alli Gray, the marketing director at the Battlefield Mall.
Springfield officials urge caution and preparedness ahead of Black Friday traffic
With high foot traffic will inevitably come high street traffic. The Transportation Management Center of the Ozarks is prepared to monitor and respond to traffic incidents, as well as adjust signal times when and where necessary.
“We have seen holiday shopping traffic decrease gradually over the past decade,” Jason Saliba, Springfield’s signal operations engineer, said in a news release. “Due to the pandemic, traffic in 2020 decreased more profoundly than in prior years and while numbers rose back up in 2021, they still remained below pre-pandemic levels. If the first 10 months of 2022 are an accurate indicator, we expect overall holiday traffic volumes on Black Friday to be very similar to 2021.”
They anticipate the highest traffic areas to be on Glenstone Avenue between Independence and Sunset Streets and Battlefield Road between Campbell and Glenstone Avenues.
The Battlefield Mall is taking extra security measures as well to help manage heightened foot traffic.
“One of our biggest goals is to protect the safety and the well-being of our shoppers, whether that’s with security that we have present … to hand-washing stations,” Gray said.
The Transportation Management Center will monitor the entirety of Springfield for traffic flow issues, but will keep a close eye on areas that could pose the biggest risks to traffic congestion. However, they encourage drivers to take precautions as well, through tips to safely navigate traffic on Black Friday:
- Don’t follow too closely.
- Be wary of turning in and out of driveways near stopped traffic on multi-lane roadways.
- For all the typical reasons, in addition to possible extended queues, put down your phone while driving.
- Avoid the busiest time of Black Friday — roughly between noon and 2:30 p.m.
- Plan ahead for the most efficient travel route.
- Check OzarksTraffic.com and tune into local traffic reporting for current conditions.
Black Friday hours and deals at some of Springfield’s largest retailers
Listed below are some of Springfield’s biggest retailers’ hours for Black Friday and some of their steepest discounts:
- Walmart stores will be closed on Thanksgiving Day and reopen at 5 a.m. on Friday until 11 p.m. The world’s largest retailer will be offering deals in home appliances, clothing and sporting goods, but some of their steepest discounts fall in the tech category, with significant price cuts in video games, consoles, computers and televisions.
- Costco will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, and reopen on Friday at 9 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. Members at Costco can find savings in tech, jewelry, furniture and even groceries.
- Sam’s Club locations will be closed on Thanksgiving Day and be open on Black Friday from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Walmart’s sister store and wholesaler is promoting their discounts in clothes, kitchenware and appliances, and home security, among other things.
- Target will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, and be open on Black Friday from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. Shoppers at Target can anticipate finding deals in tech, including Apple products, clothing, Christmas Trees and Legos.
- The Battlefield Mall will be open from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. on Black Friday. However, some stores’ opening hours may vary.
- Lowe’s, Menards, and Home Depot stores will all be open from 6 a.m. through 9 p.m. Springfield’s big home improvement retailers will have discounts on appliances, tools and outdoor furniture and equipment
- Best Buy will open at 5 a.m. and close at 10 p.m. The tech superstore will have hundreds of dollars in discounts on Apple products, in addition to computer, television, appliance and video game markdowns.
- Kohl’s will be open from 5 a.m. to midnight on Black Friday
- Ulta Beauty stores will open at 6 a.m. and close at 10 p.m.
- Barnes & Noble will open at 8 a.m. and close at 9 p.m.
- Academy Sports + Outdoors will be open from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m.
Be sure to check the hours of any additional retailers, whether a large chain or small business, as well as restaurants and grocery stores who may be closed or operating under different hours on Black Friday.
