How will consumers react to retailers that cross the line on Black Friday?

Observation:  More and more retailers are planning to open on Thanksgiving itself, rather than opening their doors ridiculously early on Black Friday.  And by some accounts, the move is not all that popular with many consumers; for example, see this story from the New York Times (click to link).

Implications:    I was entertained by the gentleman from Best Buy—quoted in the article—trying to sound as if the store was an unwilling victim of the trend toward being open on Thanksgiving. 

As much chatter as there is about negative customer reaction, it will be interesting to see how consumers actually respond to the Thanksgiving opening this season… as the financial result will almost certainly influence similar strategies in the future.

Mike Anderson, for the Elm Street Economics consumer trends blog. A service of The Center for Sales Strategy, Inc.