MUNCY TOWNSHIP -- What stores are open and what stores are closed on Thanksgiving this year? It’s a hot-button issue in Lycoming County.
With more and more folks shopping online, some stores are even changing their in-store hours for Black Friday.
Some shoppers tell us what they think.
Gina Kinsey is not shopping for Christmas gifts yet, but the woman from Montoursville knows peak holiday bargains are just around the corner.
She says, “We like to shop yeah.”
With six children, Kinsey has a lot of stockings to stuff this holiday. Last year, Gina and her daughter were up before the sun on Black Friday.
She bagged a few bargains at the Lycoming Crossing Shopping Center near Muncy.
"It was fun, but it was crazy for all the people," says Jenna Kinsey of Montoursville.
This year, several big chains have decided to open for a few hours on Thanksgiving. Then, they close overnight before reopening early in the morning on Black Friday.
Those chains include Target and Best Buy.
"I think there will be some disappointed people, but I agree with them closing and keeping it about family and you know eating and celebrating having a nice Thanksgiving feast with your family,” added Gina Kinsey.
Those late Thanksgiving and early Black Friday shoppers will have plenty of places to go. Although the mall will be closed for Thanksgiving, some of its anchor stores are set to stay open the entire time.
Toys R Us plans to stay open from 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day to 11 p.m. on Black Friday for the shopping holiday.
Last Thanksgiving, Kate Reichenbach of Sunbury was behind a cash register working.
“We were really busy. It was jammed packed. We had about, at least, close to 50 employees working or more,” says Reichenbach.
So, even with more and more sales online, Reichenbach says Black Friday shopping is an experience that's here to stay.
