Whole Foods to give away 100 turkeys in Charlotte on Monday

High-end organic grocer Whole Foods is giving away 100 free turkeys on Monday, as the company seeks to generate buzz ahead of its Charlotte opening next year.

The contest is a sort of guerilla-marketing strategy. Interested shoppers will have to follow the Facebook page for Whole Foods Charlotte location for instructions. They'll have to find a turkey mascot and tell him the answer to a question ("What makes a Whole Foods turkey different?") to get the bird.

The turkeys will come in insulated cooler bags, spokeswoman Darrah Horgan said, along with tips for how to cook them.

Whole Foods has long been one of the most anticipated additions to the Charlotte retail scene, especially after scrapping earlier plans to build a store in the Elizabeth area years ago. (Here's an earlier story, for those hungry for more details).

The grocer broke ground on the 42,000-square-foot store at Fairview and Sharon roads in April, and the store is expected to be open in the spring. The location is diagonally across from SouthPark mall, and in a location already offering high-end grocery options, including EarthFare and Harris Teeter's Morrocroft location.

Concord Mills to open at midnight on Black Friday

Concord Mills, the mega-mall on I-85, will open at midnight on the Friday immediately after Thanksgiving, the mall said this week.

Many of the stores will be offering steep discounts, such as 50 percent off everything at the Banana Republic Factory Store, 20 percent of at the Nike Factory Store, and up to 70 percent off select items at the Gap.

Though there's been some anecdotal backlash among consumers and workers (such as this petition by a worker asking Target not to open at midnight), it hasn't deterred retailers from pushing hours earlier than ever this Black Friday.

Major retailers, including Target, Kohl's, Macy's and Best Buy are opening at midnight on Black Friday, Wal-Mart is starting deals at 10 p.m. on Thanksgiving and Toys 'R' Us is opening at 9 p.m.

 "We are very focused on giving shoppers exactly what they want, which we see as the ‘more factor’ approach to shopping," said Holly Roberson, Concord Mills' director of marketing. And that includes more time to shop on Black Friday.

Toys 'R' Us to open at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving

Retailers seem bent on falling over each other to see who can have the earliest ever "Black Friday" opening this year, and now there's a new leader: Toys "R" Us will open its doors at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving.

Black Friday, traditionally the blockbuster shopping day after Thanksgiving, has been pushed earlier and earlier this year, finally biting firmly into Thanksgiving day. Best Buy, Macy's, Target and Kohl's all abandoned traditional 4 a.m. Friday openings earlier this month, and announced they'll open their doors right at midnight on Nov. 25.

Wal-Mart, the country's largest retailer, announced it would start offering doorbuster deals at 10 p.m. on Thanksgiving, even earlier than the other stores. Gap, Inc. said about 1,000 of their Banana Republic, Old Navy, Gap and outlet stores would simply stay open on Thanksgiving, as they did last year.

Toys "R" Us had opened at 10 p.m. last year. Company officials said the decision was made with customers in mind.

Black Friday is truly the kickoff to the holiday shopping season, and we’re excited to welcome customers at Toys“R”Us stores across the country for what has become an annual tradition for many families after Thanksgiving dinner is finished," said chief marketing officer Greg Ahearn, in a statement.

Retailers are competing for every dollar this holiday season, at a time when the economy is shaky and holiday spending is forecast to rise somewhere around 2 to 3 percent, about half of last year's increase.

There may be backlash building, however. Despite the stores' insistence that customers like the earlier hours, emails and phone calls I've gotten certainly indicate a lot of consumers are fed up with Black Friday creep. And some retail employees, like this gentleman who's starting a petition against Target, are also saying enough is enough.

What do you think?

Family Dollar goes coast-to-coast, opens first CA stores

Matthews-based Family Dollar is set to open its first stores in California this week, completing the discount retailer's march west.

The chain was founded in Charlotte more than 50 years ago by entrepreneur Leon Levine. There are now more than 7,000 Family Dollar stores, as the company has ramped up expansion plans and taken advantage of an economy that's left more consumers looking for bargains.

I've written about Family Dollar's move into California before, but here's a story on the LA Times' website with a bit more detail. There's also a press release from Family Dollar today about the store's plans.

The company's first four stores in California will open this week, on Thursday, and plans to have 50 more open in the state by next fall. Family Dollar will target southern California first.

Retail events for Veterans Day

In addition to parades and other events, retailers are offering discounts and some services to military personnel to mark Veterans Day.

Here is a very limited, extremely far from comprehensive list of some of what's on tap:

Harris Teeter is offering an 11 percent discount (after coupons and other discounts have been applied) on groceries to service members on Friday, Nov. 11. A valid military ID card is required.

Also on Friday, Nov. 11, Food Lion is offering a 10 percent discount to service members. The company will also donate $134,000 to the Wounded Warrior Project, a non-profit that helps wounded veterans.

JCPenney is giving 6,000 veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan gift certificates for $200 worth of clothing. The winners will be randomly selected from veterans who sign up for a shot at the prize by Nov. 20. For more information, click here.

Wal-Mart to start Black Friday on Thanksgiving

If you thought Black Friday creep (the trend driving stores to open earlier and earlier the day after Thanksgiving) might be a passing fad, abandon hope: Wal-Mart is jumping into the ring.

Wal-Mart said Thursday that it will kick off its Black Friday sales at 10 p.m. Thanksgiving day, joining a host of other national retailers who are pushing shopping right up to - and even into - turkey day.

“Our customers told us they would rather stay up late to shop than get up early, so we’re going to hold special events on Thanksgiving and Black Friday,” said Duncan MacNaughton, Wal-Mart's chief merchandising officer, in a statement about the retailers earliest Black Friday ever.

The retail giant's sale will run in two waves. First, at 10 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 24, home goods, toys and apparel will be steeply discounted, followed by a midnight sale on electronics. Wal-Mart will also have online-only sales with free shipping on Thanksgiving, and continuing discounts through the holiday weekend.

Last year, Wal-Mart followed the early bird schedule of most retailers, starting its sale in the pre-dawn hours after Thanksgiving. But this year, Black Friday has been shifting relentlessly earlier: Kohl's, Target, Macy's and Best Buy have all announced their first ever midnight openings. Charlotte-based Belk has given an hour, announcing it will open at 3 a.m. instead of 4 a.m. this year.

Gap plans to have about 1,000 of its Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy and outlet stores open on Thanksgiving day.

The race to open earlier comes as retail trade groups and analysts are mostly predicting lackluster gains in holiday spending, as the economy remains on rocky ground and it's not clear when steady improvement will begin. Black Friday is usually the biggest single shopping day of the year.

Wal-Mart has been turning the clock forward on the holiday season this year. The retailer rolled out some holiday merchandise in mid-September, its earliest yet, and held an extensive sale last weekend with discounts it said were close to Black Friday levels.

So, readers out there, what do you think? Do you buy MacNaughton's argument? Might it actually be saner to do your shopping right after Thanksgiving dinner and then fall into bed, exhausted but satisfied, at 3 a.m. or so? Or is this just one more example of creeping commercialism marching ever-deeper into once-sacred territory?

Feeling sick - go see Dr. ...Wal-Mart?

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer, wants to become the nation's largest primary health care provider.

The article, which actually originated with KaiserHealthNews.org, says that Wal-Mart is soliciting partner companies to help it provide low-cost primary health care.

According to the Journal's story: "Wal-Mart said in its proposal document that it is interested in offering services including clinical care such as monitoring for asthma, sleep apnea and osteoporosis; diagnostic services such as allergy and blood testing; and preventative services such as vaccinations and physical exams, as well as health and wellness products."

The retail giant has struggled domestically with declining sales and sluggish growth at it's 3,800 U.S. stores, even as it keeps growing overseas. Wal-Mart has shifted its merchandise mix to add back thousands of items taken out of stores in a de-cluttering effort a few years ago, in a bid to lure shoppers back.

Wal-Mart also has a successful line of financial services at its Money Centers, which offer low-cost check cashing and pre-paid debit cards to shoppers, many of whom lack bank accounts. Efforts such as that - and its potential medical services - lure more potential shoppers into the store, boosting traffic and sales.

So will you go to Dr. Wal-Mart? Or is the retail giant already big enough, in your opinion?