Brian McKeithan, Marietta Daily Journal, Ga.
·2 min read
Nov. 23—MARIETTA — Black Friday is nigh and America's largest retailer has prepared deals to lure overfed shoppers into their stores and onto their website.
Walmart spokeswoman Erica Evans said this year Walmart has spread its Black Friday deals throughout the month of November, with new deals being released online on Mondays, and in stores on Wednesdays. Shoppers hunting for the usual Christmas gifts — video games, electronic gadgets and toys — can avoid leaving their house this Friday.
"I'm going to be on Walmart.com because I am a Plus member. So I will be shopping from my house." Evans said.
Members of the Walmart Plus program get 7 hours of early access to deals online, which Evans is hoping to use to buy one of the season's hot items for her nephew: a Meta Quest 2 virtual reality headset.
Walmart stores across the nation will be closed on Thanksgiving Day and will open at 5 a.m. on Black Friday. This means Nando Fischer, the store manager at what she calls the "Big Chicken Walmart," will start her workday at the Walmart off Cobb Parkway in Marietta at 4 a.m.
Fischer said she doesn't mind the early hours and that the rest of the store's employees were looking forward to the big day.
"Being here for the customers has always been a tradition for Walmart, so our associates get very excited and can't wait," Fischer said.
She added that Walmart employees working Black Friday receive an extra 15% discount off anything in the store, on top of their usual 10% employee discount.
While at the Big Chicken Walmart, the MDJ spoke with brothers Loleyi and Gbayilo Oluwatomisin of Marietta, who are 18 and 16 respectively.
They said they were hunting for something specific this Black Friday.
"Obviously it has to be the PS5," said Loleyi Oluwatomisin, adding that this would be their first time making a big Black Friday purchase.
"We're thinking about buying the bundle online and picking it up later," added Gbayilo Oluwatomisin.
The brothers plan on splitting the cost of the new PlayStation between them. According to Walmart's website, the Black Friday deal for a PlayStation 5 is $636. The usual price: $921.27.
The Meta Quest 2 VR headset is on sale online now for $399, down from $459.99.
