black friday

Despite Strong December Sales, a Mixed Holiday Season for Retail

The retail industry is reporting some much-needed good news in the form of stronger-than-expected December sales figures. But those numbers seem to have come as a result of desperate last-minute discounting, suggesting reduced profit margins and an increasingly hard-to-please American shopper.

Last-Minute Christmas Shopping Guide

The kick-off to the holiday season gets earlier every year, but that doesn't mean that consumers are getting better at finishing their shopping early. As the National Retail Federation notes, American consumers typically have about half their holiday shopping left to go in mid-December.

Free Smartphone With That Suit? The Best Deals This Weekend

This weekend represents something of a lull in the holiday season. Black Friday is behind us, and any lingering Cyber Week sales are wrapping up. The remaining big shopping days won't come until later in December. Still, there are deals to be found this weekend. Here are a few.

Holiday Shopping Calendar: Your List of the Best Days to Buy

Black Friday has been around for decades, but in the last several years, the holiday shopping season has gained a number of additional "special" shopping days. So if you're looking for the right days for deals, (or when to avoid the crowds) here's a run-down of all the retail deal days worth knowing.

Extreme Shoppers Score $8,000 of Stuff for $1,300

How's this for holiday savings: Bringing home a haul of remote control cars, tablets, coats and boots worth $8,000 for just $1,300. That's what extreme couponer Joni Crothers and her "coupon-tourage" accomplished on a Black Friday shopping spree to fulfill the wish lists of 16 children in need.

Five Big Surprises from Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the two most heavily hyped shopping days of the season, are behind us: Online retail sales were fantastic, and Amazon and Walmart had nice weekends. But anyone could have predicted that. Here are a few results of the big shopping weekend you probably didn't see coming.

The Christmas Shopping Battle: Early Winners and Losers

The battle for your holiday spending dollars is well under way, and it's not too soon to start handicapping 2012's likely winners. Some may be obvious (like Amazon), but others may surprise you. Here's how the holiday shopping season is shaking out across the retail landscape.

Black Friday 2012: Reports From the Holiday Season Kickoff

DailyFinance's Matt Brownell is covering the Black Friday holiday shopping kickoff, starting Thursday evening. This article will be updated periodically with fresh details from across the country. And if you've got pictures or stories of your own shopping experiences, pass them along for us to share.

5 Things You Shouldn't Buy on Black Friday

According to the National Retail Federation, 147 million Americans plan to shop on Black Friday weekend, because that's when they'll get the best deals. But that's just not always so. For these five types of purchase, you'd be better off skipping the post-Thanksgiving stampede.

Wall Street Watch: Waiting for All Week for Black Friday Numbers

Investors know that it will be a week of heavy eating and light trading. The market is closed on Thanksgiving, and will close early on Friday. However, it won't be a light week for retail, so the Black Friday and Cyber Monday results will be top of mind for the market-minded.

Target Responds to Backlash Over Thanksgiving Night Opening

Target is pushing back against complaints that its 9 p.m. Thanksgiving opening is ruining the holiday for its employees. It's hardly the only retailer making the move, an online petition singling out Target at Change.org had 228,000 signatures as of Friday morning.

Is Cyber Monday Obsolete?

It was only seven years ago that some clever folks at Shop.org decided to promote e-commerce with its own version of Black Friday, and Cyber Monday was born. But in our smartphone- and tablet-powered world, holiday shopping is getting more "cyber" every year. Does online retail still need its special day?

Black Friday Sales: Your Big Guide to Deals, Stores and Times

Black Friday sales circulars for several major retailers are already out online, and the deals look tempting. And at some chains, you won't even have to wait until Friday. We'll update as we learn more, but here's the scoop on the deals and sale times that we know so far.

Target Joins the Black Friday Rush with Thankgiving Opening

Target's Black Friday Sale will begin at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving, three hours earlier than a year ago. The discounter joins several other major retailers, including Walmart, that are kicking off the holiday shopping season on Thanksgiving Day and staggering deals over the two-day period.

Walmart's Black Friday 2012 Will Start at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving

Black Friday sales have been starting earlier and earlier, and now, Walmart is pushing the retail craziness even further: It will open its doors at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving, before the evening's football game between the Jets and the Patriots even kicks off.

PayPal Announces the Season's Best Price-Match Policy

Every holiday season, most major retailers roll out special seasonal price-match policies in an attempt to assure customers that they won't be undersold. But chains like Target and Best Buy just saw their price-match deals blown out of the water -- not by another retailer, but by payment processor PayPal.

Walmart Faces Lawsuit Over Unpaid Overtime as Strike Threats Grow

A new lawsuit accuses Walmart and two staffing agencies of requiring temporary employees to show up early for work, stay late, and work through lunch. The proposed class action, filed on Monday in federal court, alleged the world's largest retailer and the agencies violated minimum wage and overtime laws.

Can Retailers Beat 'Showrooming' This Christmas?

Traditional brick-and-mortar retailers are turning from stores where people buy things into showrooms for e-commerce sites. But this holiday season, with their most important quarter of the year hanging in the balance, they're fighting back hard.

Black Friday Reveal: Not Such a Deal After All

If you're one of the throngs of shoppers who camp out all night outside the nation's stores before Black Friday in hopes of nabbing a huge deal when the doors swing open, you've been duped.

5 Reasons Best Buy Stockholders Should Dread Thursday

The holidays may have come and gone, but when Best Buy posts its quarterly earnings, it's going to very publicly relive them -- whether it wants to or not. Wall Street analysts are generally optimistic, but there reasons for investors to worry.

8 Stocks That Could Double in Value in 2012

It is unusual for a stock's price to double in a year, but several well-known companies' shares have done it recently. The more important question for investors is: Which stock could be next? 24/7 Wall St. offer their list of S&P 500 companies whose stocks could double in 2012.

Record Super Saturday Sales Signal a Consumer Rebound

Following a record Black Friday, retail sales hit new heights on Dec. 17 -- the penultimate shopping Saturday before Christmas and a day when retailers trot out themed promotions. It's a sign that many consumers have rebounded from the recession and unleashed their pent-up buying demand.

Online Shopping Problem? Please Hold for a Human

Millions of holiday shoppers aiming to avoid the crowds are headed online. But not all retailers do e-commerce with ease -- especially if you have questions and need help from a customer service representative. Which chains respond fast -- and which don't? We have the answers.

Holiday Shopping Alert: The Best Deals Are Ahead

Attention holiday shoppers: Don't feel blue if you missed Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Retail analysts say the best deals are yet to come, with discounts growing deeper as Christmas draws nearer.

5 Things to Watch: From Dollars to Doughnuts

There's never a dull moment on Wall Street, especially with the holiday season under way. Among the items that will shape this week: Cyber Monday, Nook Tablets falling and doughnuts rising, digital tunes playing and retailers facing the music.