Many people can't wait until Thanksgiving. It means lots of great food being shared with friends and family. But, in the retail world, it means mentally dealing with three straight days of mass chaos filled with caffeine, random food, and lots and lots of people.
For those of you who work in retail, or have in the past, you can probably relate and find sympathy for every other retail worker on this upcoming Black Friday Eve, Black Friday, and Saturday.
1. The mental prep and strategy plan that goes into Black Friday is comparable to that of prepping for a battle.
It truly is all strategy when it comes to figuring out how to tackle the crowds that come out to shop on Black Friday.
2. The amount of caffeine, Red Bull, and other various forms of liquid energy found in the back room can not be described.
If you look closely enough at some of us workers, you can actually see our eyes twitch. With that much caffeine in our systems, it's not that our bodies won't stop moving, it is that our bodies can NOT stop moving.
3. Thanksgiving for us is just Black Friday Eve.
Once you enter the retail world, Thanksgiving will never be the same.
4. Seeing a fellow coworker rocking back and forth in a corner on their break is not out of the norm.
Between the physical exhaustion, the inability to feel your legs and feet, and the major crash after the caffeine wears off, it's imaginable that this is the way to cope when your shift isn't even half way over.
5. If you have family in a different state or even city, you can forget about seeing them for Thanksgiving.
If you're lucky enough to eat a Thanksgiving style dinner on Thursday, it usually will be by yourself.
6. Parking on Black Friday is the first test of patience and strength for shoppers and especially workers.
If you want to find parking, you have to get to the mall an hour before your shift, and even then you'll just be searching for parking that entire hour.
7. Between "Grey Thursday," Black Friday, and Saturday, the amount of cardio we do is the reason behind the little energy and life we have left after it's all over.
It's amazing how draining and exhausting it is to work the three busiest days in the retail world.
8. Our facial expressions and happy mannerisms start to become permanent after awhile.
Not only does our "happy face" start to become repetitive, but so do the deals and questions we get.
9. Sleep is the only thing we're thinking of as our shift starts to get closer to the end because when we're working, what even is sleep?
Sleep becomes a thing of the past during holiday season in retail, but during Thanksgiving and Black Friday it is completely nonexistent.
10. We appreciate cooperation and patience when you talk and shop with us.
We know shopping with so many people can be overwhelming but please trust us, our job is not to make your life more difficult. Therefore, your patience and cooperation during the crazy days is extremely appreciated and valued!
With that being said, to everyone going shopping on "Grey Thursday," Black Friday, and Saturday, please enjoy yourselves but be careful.
To all my fellow retail workers....
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!
