Kansas City - Beware the approach of Black Friday.
A little more than a week away from the traditionally frenzied post-Thanksgiving Day spree in which millions of US shoppers scramble to snap up deeply discounted goods, the federal government and retailing experts are advising stores on how to prevent consumers from engaging in hand-to-hand combat.
Retailers are being urged to open earlier - or not to close at all - ahead of Black Friday, to avoid long lines of anxious customers building up outside.
Numbered tickets, wristbands or both are recommended for preventing wrestling matches over limited supplies of flat-screen televisions or coveted new toys.
And in those crowded parking lots where consumers sometimes wait for hours before a store opening, retailers would be wise to clear the lots of shopping carts or other items that could be used as “projectiles,” according to a warning issued this month to retailers by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
“People really want to get in and get their hands on that cheap item,” said retailing consultant Kelly Brown. She said some retailers try to keep waiting customers happy by serving hot chocolate or candy - anything to avoid angst.
Two years ago, a Wal-Mart worker on Long Island died after a mob of shoppers smashed through the store's entrance doors and trampled the man to death. Four shoppers were injured in the melee. Reports of fistfights, property damage and other problems have plagued stores around the country.
With that in mind, OSHA sent letters this month to more than a dozen major retailers warning them of the dangers of expected large, potentially dangerous crowds.
“Crowd-related injuries during special retail sales and promotional events have increased during recent years,” said OSHA Assistant Secretary David Michaels. “Many of these incidents can be prevented by adopting a crowd management plan.”
To handle crowds that in some cases can number several hundred or more outside large retailers and to keep employees protected, OSHA recommends that stores position security personnel and crowd managers alongside the area shoppers enter a store - rather than in their path.
OSHA also said crowds could be kept happier if provided access to toilets, water and shelter.
Crowd control is at least partly behind a move by Toys R Us stores to change its schedules. The company said it will open at 10 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, its earliest opening ever for the holiday weekend, to help deal with crowds that gather early on the morning of Black Friday.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, announced on Monday that it will invite customers in at midnight on Black Friday for an “open house.” Patrons will be allowed to start shopping for toys, apparel and home goods before deep discounts kick in at 5am on computers, video games and other electronics.
“You have to be in continuous control,” said Brown, retail industry practice leader for risk consultant Zurich Services Corp. “If a retailer is to open at 5am, they better open those doors at 5am” - Reuters