Wal-Mart worker dies in Black Friday stampede

[KSig RC]

Originally Posted by WinniBug

That's what I was just thinking
It's the stores' fault for having a small, limited number of items and these doorbuster sales.
If you want something in particular, you have to get there first thing or the good deals will be all gone. Stores should carry more of the high-demand items.

Of course, you realize that carrying more of them will cause the price to rise, right? Often the stores are taking a loss on these items (or the manufacturer is, which is why the numbers are limited) . . .

[Scandia]

OK, confession time. I bought something other than food. I purchased a baking pan in order to bake some brownies in. It was my first time making brownies, so I did not have one.

The brownies turned out great, btw. I'll take the rest to my colleagues since there's no way I can eat all of them.

[IlovemyAKA]

That is a HORRIBLE story. I participated in my first ever Black Friday shopping today. I was at Walmart @ 4:30 because it's literally right behind my apartment complex. IT. WAS. CHAOS!! The workers weren't really set up yet, and didn't know where anything was. People were acting like animals. I grabbed the 2 items I wanted that weren't available online (a slow cooker and blender for $4 each for my sister's new apartment). That was easy because everyone else was swamping electronics so housewares was safe. I ordered everything else online & kept my sanity. I was back home by 5:15. As my facebook status states, I'll never do it again.

[WinniBug]

Originally Posted by KSig RC

Of course, you realize that carrying more of them will cause the price to rise, right? Often the stores are taking a loss on these items (or the manufacturer is, which is why the numbers are limited) . . .

I have a hard time believing that anyone in this day and age would sell items at a loss...maybe a minimum gain, but I doubt they lose money, or there wouldn't be any point.

[epchick]

Originally Posted by WinniBug

I have a hard time believing that anyone in this day and age would sell items at a loss...maybe a minimum gain, but I doubt they lose money, or there wouldn't be any point.

When I worked at Aeropostale (it was an outlet store) we got all the clearance items from the other stores. Well, we'd sell those clearance items at ridiculously low prices (.99 cents for capris and shorts, 1.00 for shirts/tanks) because they just took up too much room, and we needed to have space for the new clearance items. We didn't make our sales quota on the clearance items, so those weren't our priority.

I think it would work the same with electronics. Those 'awesome' deals are usually on things that are older versions, or have less memory, etc. It's probably stuff that the store isn't making money on, so they rather sell it all to make room for newer items.

[WinniBug]

OK clearance items, I can see - yeah, costs more to keep them around than to get rid of them as cheaply as possible, but Wii's, iPods, other electronics...some of the doorbusters are current and in-demand. Why would they take a loss on items like these?

[awkward1]

The loss leaders draw people into the store. While the stores do take a loss on these items they are banking on the large crowd who turns out to buy item 'x' will then purchase other products while in the store. In the end the store makes more money even though they take a loss on a few items. Grocery stores do the same thing, they attract customers with loss leaders because most people will end up buying more.

[PeppyGPhiB]

Originally Posted by WinniBug

OK clearance items, I can see - yeah, costs more to keep them around than to get rid of them as cheaply as possible, but Wii's, iPods, other electronics...some of the doorbusters are current and in-demand. Why would they take a loss on items like these?

Because they only have a small number of them, and they know that once they sell out of those, people who waited in line and got up at the crack of dawn to get there will buy something else! These sales are just a ruse to get people into the stores...which is why they're all opening up even earlier this year. The frenzy they create is the ONLY way they're going to get people into the stores this year.

[WinniBug]

Eh - I guess that does make sense.

[AGDee]

I have been Black Friday shopping and have never found people to be vicious or wild. In fact, when I've done it, the mood was festive and the energy was fun. It probably helped that I was never there for the limited, hard to find, huge sale items that everybody wanted. The last time I did it, the big thing was the Pokemon Game Boy. I seem to remember everybody wanted the yellow one. Anyway, people filed into the store calmly back then.

Some stores have done a smart thing and go along the line an hour or two before opening asking people which item they are waiting for. They give out a voucher for that item so that these kinds of stampedes don't have to happen. Sort of like the wrist band concept for concert tickets. They would announce to the whole line when they were out of vouchers so those people could leave if they wanted to. I think it was Best Buy that was doing that. They did that for book signings and book releases too (the seventh Harry Potter for one) to avoid those kinds of problems. There ARE ways around it.

I fully intended to be out there today. However, since it looks like, when it's all finished, I will have paid $2700 in car repairs/rental over the past week/next week, I've told the kids that there may not be a Christmas this year. I've spent my emergency fund, my Christmas fund and will have loaded a credit card to it's limit on a rental car so I can work and I'm basically screwed. I could go further into debt to provide a Christmas like they are used to, but I won't. I was in tears on Wednesday when I found out that the initial $500 repair wasn't enough and I was looking at another $1500. My 12 year old son came to me shortly after my talk with the kids and said "We are still going to have a Christmas, Momma. Other people buy us plenty of stuff and we'll still see our relatives and that's what is really important." A wise young man there. About 20 minutes after that, my daughter came to me and said "Can you buy me this $15 t-shirt as an early Christmas present? There are only 50 more available and I really want it." My son and I looked at her and I said "What part of that earlier conversation did you miss?" Two kids raised by the same two parents under the same lifelong financial conditions and they have such different attitudes. Is this an inborn thing? That girl is a financial bottomless pit, always wanting more, with an Amazon wish list of 94 items (mostly books and CDs) and then there's my son who didn't give me enough ideas to be able to pass them on to all the different relatives. I've done everything I can think of to try to instill some money values into this girl and nothing has worked. My son though? He wanted a capture card so he can record things from the TV or Xbox to the computer so he could edit movies to post on YouTube. He came to me with a plan of extra work he would do around the house for two months to earn the capture card. I rewarded his plan with the capture card and have held him to the agreement. I really don't know why they are so different.

All that said, I don't see anything wrong with taking of advantage of sales for things that you were planning on buying anyway. If I was in the market for an HDTV and had saved $1000 for it to find that the one I had saved for was on sale for $700, I would attempt to get it and save that $300. The error is when people decide they need it because it's on sale rather than already having a plan to buy it and deciding to buy it when it's on sale.

[DrPhil]

http://www.nydailynews.com/forums/th...art=0&tstart=0

There are some idiots in the comment section of this article. I weep for their brains.

[agzg]

When I was working at Target during grad school, we used to sell A TON of stuff at a loss. Video game systems were the biggest money losers, but we banked on the games selling on which we made like a 50% profit. It all works out in the end and stores rarely lose money on doorbuster sales like that, but only if they only do it once or twice a Christmas season.

I'm pretty much all done - I just need smaller things like stocking stuffers (always a toothbrush and toothpaste and sometimes Kleenex pocket packs) something for live-in's dad and brother, and little things for him. All things I didn't need to get on Black Friday, as none of it is probably going to be on super huge sale for Christmas.

My sister-mother was a Guest Service Team Lead at Target in Erie, PA, and one year on Black Friday someone got sick of waiting for a team member to open the video game cases in order to get out locked games, so they SMASHED THE GLASS, grabbed what they wanted, and caused a huge mess. Since electronics is ALWAYS on camera (in most Target stores, all the little black domes have cameras in them around electronics) they were able to identify the person and I think pressed charges after stopping them before they got to the register.

Since then they always pull Loss Prevention and Asset Protection team members from other Targets in the area that don't have large crowds on Black Friday, just to manage those crazy soccer moms.

Wal-Mart, however, is always just a touch crazier than other discount retailers during Christmastime.

[Velocity_14]

My heart and prayers goes out to the families!!

People...it really isn't that serious...and to be honest...the sales aren't THAT good to be acting like that anyway...

[ree-Xi]

Originally Posted by PeppyGPhiB

Because they only have a small number of them, and they know that once they sell out of those, people who waited in line and got up at the crack of dawn to get there will buy something else! These sales are just a ruse to get people into the stores...which is why they're all opening up even earlier this year. The frenzy they create is the ONLY way they're going to get people into the stores this year.

I read on CNN that many early shoppers came in with lists, did not deviate from the lists, made their purchases, and left. We got to the mall at 5:15 (hubby needed new tires and sears auto had a great sale) and then did our shopping. I had coupons for the three stores I was going to, a list and price for each person on my list - immediate family only, and saved 62% off the bottom line price. That's the orinigal cost minus discounts minus my coupons. Our mall was pretty empty - people were leaving the parking lot as early as 5:20am.

This story breaks my heart, and further iterates my general sadness and distrust of the human conscience. I used to be an idealist; I still do hope for the best, and I continue to be disappointed by the horros I have seen, but I have lost a lot of faith in humanity.

[KSUViolet06]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/28/bla...nce/index.html

More Black Friday Violence

Two men shot dead in CA Toys R Us store.