After finishing Thanksgiving dinner, everyone knows what typically happens next: Black Friday shopping. While people are normally rushing to get to stores to find crazy sales and wait in hour-long lines at midnight, Black Friday shopping looks a little different this year. Nonetheless, the fun holiday is far from cancelled!

Black Friday falls on Friday, Nov. 27 this year, but a multitude of stores are either closed, online or utilizing some other form of modification. For example, Walmart is closed on Thanksgiving day for the first time in history and not opening their store until midnight that Friday. The store wanted to give their employees a day off to spend with their families after the crazy past few months, especially before the busiest day of the year. 

In states or counties where deemed necessary, capacity will be limited within stores. Walmart also stated their plan to focus on putting “quarantine essentials” on sale, such as workout materials, athleisure and loungewear, work from home electronics and more. 

Other large stores, like Target, Ulta and Bed Bath & Beyond, are open and participating in Black Friday. However, Target will also be closed on Thanksgiving Day – something new for them as well. They will open bright and early at 7 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 27. To showcase their deals, the store released a 36 page advertisement. This ad is full of every type of item imaginable, but some of their biggest deals in the magazine are Smart HD T.V.s, Kitchen Aids, speakers, Nintendo Switches, Air Pods, video doorbells and more.

At Ulta, they are having a week long virtual Black Friday sale, as well as an extended in person sale. Online, the deals will go live on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 9 p.m. EST, and in store, the deals begin on Sunday, Nov. 22 when they open at 9 a.m. Both sales are going on all week, through the actual date of this year’s Black Friday (Nov. 27). In the Tallahassee location, the store is open and available for those who prefer shopping in person. Ulta is holding some amazing deals, so whether it’s time to Christmas shop for moms, sisters or friends, this sale is a must-see. 

Major retailers, such as Lowe’s, Home Depot, Macy’s, Nordstrom and other stores alike are offering a new option that wasn’t available before the strange year of 2020: curbside pickup. Normally only recognized as an option for food pickup, this option allows individuals to safely get their Black Friday shopping done without having to make contact with others. To take advantage of this innovative option, an order must first be placed on the store’s website or app, and then choose the “curbside pickup” selection. The steps vary from retailer to retailer, but some stores are even offering a gift! At Nordstrom, the first 50 customers each day, from Oct. 19 to Dec. 24, that use curbside pickup get a free “thank you” gift from the department store.

So much has changed in the past nine months, and this holiday is no different. While in some cases it will be different, think of it as an opportunity to find better deals and have a larger variety of ways to shop.