Stores Opening with Black Friday Deals on Thanksgiving Day

Tay Rees/Lifesize/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- Christmas shopping will be starting even earlier this year.  Black Friday is coming to Thursday. That's right on Thanksgiving Day.

"Nothing's sacred anymore, I guess," Chicago resident Amanda Palmucci said today. "I don't agree with it. I think the best way to spend Thanksgiving is with your family – overeating, you know."

For the first time, Target, Macy's, Best Buy and Kohl's say they will be opening their doors at midnight Thursday. Wal-Mart will open at 10 p.m.

"Basically what it is, it's a race for space," said Marshal Cohen, chief retail analyst at the NPD Group. "If retailers can be the first doors open, they're going to capture that enthusiastic Black Friday customer."

Cohen said that even though the weekend represented about 11 percent of the holiday business, it still set a tone.

Sears and JC Penney said they will not be opening on Thanksgiving Day so that workers can be with their families. Anthony Hardwick, a Target employee, has created an online petition urging his employer not to open until Friday morning.

"I'm going to have to get some sleep and I’ll probably go to bed at 2 and miss my family's Thanksgiving dinner completely," said Hardwick, who has to be at work at Target at 11 p.m. to prepare for the rush of shoppers.

Brenda Hurst told ABC News that she had shopped on Black Friday once and would never do it again.

"It was an absolute madhouse," the Indiana woman said. "I had a woman who would not give me a parking spot. … She was saving it for somebody. My personal vote is: Everyone take a break from spending and let's just be thankful for what we already have with our family and good health."

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