In an announcement today, the company said its Thanksgiving weekend sales would begin at 6 p.m. on Thursday, according to USA Today.
This trumps the sale start times of fellow retailers J.C. Penney and Macy's, both of which will begin sales at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving evening. It also pushes the sales back earlier than last year, when Walmart began Black Friday at 8 p.m. on Thursday.
At least one other retailer has already announced even earlier sale start time than Walmart. USA Today reports Toys R Us plans to open its doors for Black Friday at 5 p.m. on Thursday.
Walmart has been building hype for its Black Friday sales since the beginning of November, putting some items for sale on Walmart.com as early as November 1.
According to The Associated Press, Walmart and other retailers are responding in part to a shopping season that is six days shorter than usual. They are also forced to deal with shaken consumer confidence after the 16-day partial government shutdown.
Huffington Post reports that there has been some negative response to this latest Black Friday announcement, with people taking to social media to complain about retailers encroaching on Thanksgiving.
"I am very sad and disappointed that we will not be able to attend because you decided that dinner time on a holiday centered around dinner with family was the best time to do these sales," wrote Kodi Brandt-Ogle on Facebook.
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