Many Retailers To Close for Thanksgiving
Trending
Many things have changed following the COVID-19 pandemic, including retailers now opting to close during certain holidays.
Such is the case for some retailers at the Ohio Valley Mall who have decided to close on Thanksgiving Day.
Boscov's recently announced it would again be giving its employees the holiday off this year.
"Closing on Thanksgiving Day gives our hard-working coworkers the ability to enjoy an uninterrupted day with their families," Jim Boscov, chairman and CEO of Boscov's, said in a release. "A number of things have changed due to the pandemic. I'm delighted that this change has become the new norm, and hope it will become permanent in the retail industry,"
The Ohio Valley Mall will most likely close on Thanksgiving Day as well, according to Joe Bell, spokesman for the mall's parent company Cafaro Co.
"That seems to be the preponderance of the opinions out there. Most retailers prefer not to be open, and I think that is really the way to go," he said. "We were closed last year for Thanksgiving, and it is extremely likely that we will be again this year. That seems to be the sentiment among the retailers and a lot of the shopping public."
Bell said it appears to be the consensus among many that the holiday is better spent at home with family. He said a lot has changed over the last eight to 10 years. In the past, the mall would open earlier and earlier on Thanksgiving and remain so throughout the night into Black Friday. That slowly waned in more recent years until mall officials ultimately made the decision to close on Thanksgiving beginning in 2021.
Bell said between the declining demand from customers and the pandemic, the decision to close on Thanksgiving was the best option.
"There was not really a great demand from consumers. We watched the traffic dwindle, especially late on Thanksgiving night, and it wasn't really worth the while for a lot of retailers to stay open. ... The whole debacle that was caused by government shutdowns during the pandemic, that reduced the availability of people to work for those retailers and so they couldn't staff their stores. So it just made a lot of sense to not be open on Thanksgiving," he said.
Though the mall will be closed, retailers with external entrances can still choose to open their doors during the Thanksgiving holiday.
"They are perfectly welcome to do so, but we have not heard from any that has expressed any interest one way or another about that," he said.
The mall will reopen the following morning on Black Friday, Nov. 25, though a set holiday schedule has not yet been announced. Last year, the mall opened from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Black Friday. Bell said the schedule will likely reflect those times.
"The plans are still being formulated but we're looking forward to seeing how it all falls into place. There's still a great demand to shop, one that's accelerated over the last year -- people willing to get out and be in places to shop, and we don't think that's going to change any. People are going to want to get out there, and we're looking forward to a very robust holiday season," Bell said.