Wal-Mart Black Friday Vent

[HelenePA]

I guess I'm confused because the OP continues to blame WalMart for her lack of knowledge . It appears the store gave out tickets at a point when the line for the item became longer than the number of units available. It shouldn't matter if that was 4:30, or 6:00, or 8:00, or 9:00, or 11:57, or never (again, she should see the post about some WalMarts not opening until 4:00 AM, and that was a corporate decision!).

Frankly, this OP sounds like someone who would purchase something Consumer Reports rated 'not recommended' or 'not acceptable', then when she had whatever problem they highlighted complain she wasn't familiar with Consumer Reports.

it said right on the website times may vary because of laws about opening time and to check your local walmart, it had nothing about corporate decisions! On the website you would have also found a map of where all the big ticket stuff was store by store isle by isle.

 

[dansamy]

I got three tablets from bestbuy.com for $540, tax incl. I think I did a good job!

OP, for next year, you might want to check out which door busters will also be available online. BB's door buster's went live at 0500 T-day. And they were sold out by 0800. I don't know when WM.com's door busters were available online or which ones. I specifically wanted tablets. Best Buy had two good models for ~40-50% off retail.

 

[mickeysgal]

I really wish the OP would stop fixating on the concept of tickets being given out and focus on the concept of lines. A line is what drove the distribution of the TVs - not the fact that there were tickets given out. The tickets were just extra reinforcement of the order of the line. The tickets had nothing to do with the TVs being spoken for - the LINE is what prevented the OP from getting the TV.

My head is going to explode.

 

[Planogirl]

This reminds of the arguments about whether people should be allowed to use their fastpasses past the stated windows. People get ideas and logic and rules don't sink in.

 

[aprilgail2]

Sorry to hear about your toe!! Your walmart sounded like mine! Ours is full of state police just standing at every turn and sitting in cars out front the stores. I took my dad last night, his first time in walmart on black friday. what an experience for him One lady in electronics took a movie and threw and hit a man in the face. The store manager completely blew his fuse on her and the police hauled her out.

It really was insane in Walmart- they try to make it organized but the people that are shopping there are just insane! My friend was there when they uncovered the case of video games at 10pm and it was like a shark feeding frenzy- the whole display was wiped out in minutes and then someone must have really really wanted what she had because she was knocked over, kicked and the games in her hand were ripped out by someone and they took them and ran!!

 

[MouseLover]

My Walmart still had at least 10 of these TV's at 10:45am Friday. I don't know if they had a huge number of them or if they just weren't a big seller in my area.

 

[connorlevismom]

My Walmart was set up so terribly. They had things spread out everywhere in the store so you had no idea where to even look for something. Then, nothing was marked with the sales price, just the regular prices. Some had balloons tied to them, but most of the balloons got rip off by the crazy people and they were all floating on the ceiling. I ended up leaving because I could not figure out if what I was buying was the correct item on sale. The line for the price check was super long because everyone was trying to figure out if what they had was the item on sale.

 

[Maridw]

I guess I'm confused because the OP continues to blame WalMart for her lack of knowledge . It appears the store gave out tickets at a point when the line for the item became longer than the number of units available. It shouldn't matter if that was 4:30, or 6:00, or 8:00, or 9:00, or 11:57, or never (again, she should see the post about some WalMarts not opening until 4:00 AM, and that was a corporate decision!).

Frankly, this OP sounds like someone who would purchase something Consumer Reports rated 'not recommended' or 'not acceptable', then when she had whatever problem they highlighted complain she wasn't familiar with Consumer Reports.

NO, I would never buy something rated "not recommended" or "not acceptable" by Consumer Reports. My DH checks everything against that, especially if there is a safety issue involved. We purchased the best rated/recommended car seat for my GDD because my DH values their opinion. We will do that with her booster seat too.

So we can stop beating a dead horse:

1. Yes, we were naive about BF. I said that.

2. Yes, we would not have gotten a tv because we did not get there early enough. I understand that.

3. No, we did not ask about the balloons or how they were going to handle the door busters. See #1

4. We all have our own opinions and mine is that it wasn't advertised properly. I have stated repeatedly that I knew Best Buy did tickets, but have never heard of Wal-Mart doing them - at least not in our area.

So before I get anymore snarky, .....

You all can argue amongst yourselves.

Now you can all continue to berate me and whatever, frankly I don't care anymore. As far as I am concerned, this thread is closed to me.

 

[goofy!]

My DH & I don't usually do BF. When we were there at 4:30, yes we saw the balloons, but they were low prices without items listed on them (prices like 1.99, 12.99 etc). When we got back that evening, we were searching for the tv and asked three people before we found what we wanted. The first two people did not say "look for the balloon in such and such area", no it was "it is over in the food section". The last person we asked actually pointed to the balloon.

Yes we are BF amateurs and did not know how this worked. As I said before, I have seen things about Best Buy, Target and such, and YES, I did see the story about the people that got trampled, that is one reason DH & I don't do BF. I still feel it was wrong that the tickets were given out more than 6 hours prior to the sale time. And obviously we weren't the only ones that felt it was wrong, because when we asked to talk to the manager, the way the employee referred to our situation, it sounded like someone else had also complained.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on this matter, I have stated mine and everyone else has stated theirs. We all agree to disagree on this.

I haven't been on all day because DH & I had to go to a funeral and then went shopping. We did get a couple good buys on items he wanted for the door prizes.

Also we don't live in a big city, but it is not a small city either. We have 3 Wal-Marts between Panama City and Panama City Beach.

DH & I probably will not do this again - hopefully. But then we do have a granddaughter and who knows what will happen when DH sees something he likes that he feels she has to have!

I am sorry to hear about your husband's friend.

I am still confused over how you think it would have changed your outcome if Wal-Mart had waited until later to hand out the tickets.

For, to be angry at how Wal-Mart handled line management, you have to believe that if Wal-mart did it differently, you would have had a better chance at the TV.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I agree...If you want it bad enough you will WAIT from 4pm until whenever. You can't get there are 4pm and say, "Well...This is my spot in line...but I'm gonna go over here since I have a ticket". You can't leave and come back....you tough it out or you don't get the doorbuster.

Yes, but what about the people who show up at the last minute, and try to sneak in line? If they don't hand out the tickets early, then the people who just show up and join the line will be getting things over the people who waited.

Not to speak for other posters but I don't think it's that we disagree - I mean that's fine, no big deal. It's that we, ok at least I and from reading the other posts I'll venture to guess some others, don't understand your perspective exactly. Not that we have to have the same perspective, it's just confusing.

Because... if the people showed up for the midnight sale two days ago, prepared to wait until midnight yesterday, and they gave out the tickets a day before, and the people had to stay to get the item, what's the difference?

The people who got the tickets before 8 were there, ready to wait in line until 12. They presumably did stay until 12 so what's the difference?

If they gave out the tickets exactly at 12:00, it'd be the same people who got the tickets before 8, because they were there lined up to wait for 12.

I could see your point if it was to go on sale at 12 and at 11am, before there were lines or anything, managers wandered the store asking random people if they wanted a cheap TV and handing out tickets. That'd be unfair.

However, you saw them setting up the stuff for the lines for the items (though I understand you didn't realize that's what they were doing), so you know they did do the lines for items sometime between 5-11.

You know there were enough people who had lined up to wait for the sale that, by 8, there were more people than items available. Hence they gave out tickets to the people in the front. Those people, who had queued to wait for the sale items, were the ones that got them. If, while on line, they decided they didn't want a TV, line etiquette dictates they offer the ticket to the person next in line who didn't have one (and people usually hang about in case that happens).

I've been in plenty of ticket lines for various sold-out things and someone in line in front will find they don't need a ticket, or score one and everyone just moves up a place - if someone on line has a ticket bracelet or has one but needs two together and gets two together, they turn and offer their single to the people next in the line.

It's not understanding what difference you feel it'd have made or how it'd have been more fair to hand out the tickets at 12 that's perplexing people I think.

That's what I don't get either. The OP still would've been at the end of the line, and not gotten the item. All the tickets do is prevent a mob scene for the doorbusters, making it somewhat safer. Plus, I'd rather know in advance if when they run out of an item, then stand in line for hours and find out I had missed a deal.

So we can stop beating a dead horse:

1. Yes, we were naive about BF. I said that.

2. Yes, we would not have gotten a tv because we did not get there early enough. I understand that.

3. No, we did not ask about the balloons or how they were going to handle the door busters. See #1

4. We all have our own opinions and mine is that it wasn't advertised properly. I have stated repeatedly that I knew Best Buy did tickets, but have never heard of Wal-Mart doing them - at least not in our area.

So before I get anymore snarky, as this has been a long day I am going to post this last post. My DH had to bury a good friend today. And when the bugler played taps, it was one of the most haunting sounds. I have heard it played at funerals before, but today it echoed off the buildings near where we were and it made it even more so.

You all can argue amongst yourselves.

Good night!

But I still don't understand why you're against the tickets, since they really only keep things fair. The people in line were still in line before you, regardless of any ticket system.

 

[justhat]

I don't get the animosity towards tickets either, to be honest. If you are totally in favor of having lines begin whenever they begin, then what difference does it make if you have tickets or not? That makes absolutely no sense. If they handed out the tickets to those same people in the line, or heck, handed out the tvs to those same people in the line, when the sale actually started, how would that have mattered? You still wouldn't have had a chance to get one based on the time you arrived.

 

[bellarella]

I've read and reread OP's posts. The only reason I can think she cares is if she planned on bullying her way to the items and running over the people who stood in line. Short of that, there is absolutely no reason it makes one bit of difference if tickets are handed out when people first form a line or if they are handed out at 11:59 or if they let people in one at a time.

 

[disneychrista]

The only thing I can think of is that if they had not given tikets out "five hours before the sale" the OP figures some of the people would have left the line frustrated/bored/etc and she may have been more likley to get the item.

This reminds of the arguments about whether people should be allowed to use their fastpasses past the stated windows.

As long as Disney allows you to use them past their stated window, you can in fact do so

 

[mickeysgal]

I've read and reread OP's posts. The only reason I can think she cares is if she planned on bullying her way to the items and running over the people who stood in line. Short of that, there is absolutely no reason it makes one bit of difference if tickets are handed out when people first form a line or if they are handed out at 11:59 or if they let people in one at a time.

I agree. This would be their only chance at circumventing an orderly line. That is when it would get dangerous as I don't think those waiting patiently in line would have taken very kindly to the "late-to-the-party-but-I'm-entitled-to-it-NOW" mentality.

 

[goofy!]

The only thing I can think of is that if they had not given tikets out "five hours before the sale" the OP figures some of the people would have left the line frustrated/bored/etc and she may have been more likley to get the item

I don't think that is a safe assumption. OP already stated that Wal-Mart did not advertise that they were going to hand out tickets.

So, anybody who was dedicated enough to show up 5 hours early to stand in line was already prepared to be there for the duration.

The OP still hasn't explained WHY she thinks handing out the tickets early was wrong and how it would have changed her chances.

She only has said that she is mad at them for handing them out early.

 

[daughtersrus]

Jumping in a little late here but I do have to say that I don't have a problem with the tickets, but I think that the people should have to remain in line at the store. My reasoning is that if you have to wait in line, it would prevent the same people from getting tickets for all of the great deals that they have and then going about their day at home coming back at midnight with the tickets in hand.

On a side note, my DD got yelled at by an employee at WalMart for having the coffee pot and crock pot in her cart before they unwrapped the pallet at 10pm. She explained to the staff that she got them off the shelf and not the pallet. They could see that the pallet was clearly still sealed. She even brought the clerk to the shelf to show her where she got them from and that there were still more sitting on the regular shelf. The clerk kept telling her that she needed to put them back on the pallet. DD asked her to unwrap the pallet so that she could put them there. The clerk walked away grumbling something under her breath.

 

[Tara922c]

That's the way Black Friday works. All the wal-marts around me have lines for the big ticket items. Those lines have people waiting for HOURS AND HOURS. They don't sell the T.V. until midnight, but whoever is in line first gets first dibs on the T.V.s. Each store only gets so many T.V., it is not an unlimited supply. A few years ago, Wal-Mart started handing out tickets to the people waiting all day in the line to guarentee that they would get the big item. It use to be at midnight they pulled the wrapping off the items and people would fight tooth and nails to get their hands on a T.V.. The policy keeps people safer. It also prevents people from waiting in line for 10 hours and not get a T.V.. You don't get a ticket, you don't get a T.V. My advice, don't get to wal-mart an hour before the T.Vs go on sale and expect to get one. The people who were able to buy a T.V. for dirt cheap waited all day for it.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I've read and reread OP's posts. The only reason I can think she cares is if she planned on bullying her way to the items and running over the people who stood in line. Short of that, there is absolutely no reason it makes one bit of difference if tickets are handed out when people first form a line or if they are handed out at 11:59 or if they let people in one at a time.

That's what I think too, and that's why I like the ticket system.

 

[HelenePA]

Jumping in a little late here but I do have to say that I don't have a problem with the tickets, but I think that the people should have to remain in line at the store. My reasoning is that if you have to wait in line, it would prevent the same people from getting tickets for all of the great deals that they have and then going about their day at home coming back at midnight with the tickets in hand.

On a side note, my DD got yelled at by an employee at WalMart for having the coffee pot and crock pot in her cart before they unwrapped the pallet at 10pm. She explained to the staff that she got them off the shelf and not the pallet. They could see that the pallet was clearly still sealed. She even brought the clerk to the shelf to show her where she got them from and that there were still more sitting on the regular shelf. The clerk kept telling her that she needed to put them back on the pallet. DD asked her to unwrap the pallet so that she could put them there. The clerk walked away grumbling something under her breath.

she is lucky if she got them at the BF price.. the ones on the shelf usually have different sku's than the ones on the pallet

 

[daughtersrus]

she is lucky if she got them at the BF price.. the ones on the shelf usually have different sku's than the ones on the pallet

They were the exact same thing. She waited until 10pm to check out and they rang up at the sale price. This was her first experience with Black Friday sales and the first year that I didn't see anything that I needed to get up early for.