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Host AV Christa Bender and (her co-host/sidekick for this show) Corey CB Moss welcome KMB Communications CEO and Chief Strategist Katye McGregor Bennett to talk about something that is very important to her, as well as her company: the campaign that is being conducted by retailer REI, which announced in October it would close its stores on Black Friday and instead encourage people to #OptOutside.
Along with Katye we also invited FSR Inc.’s Gina Sansivero and instead of talking about technology, Gina also participated in this discussion of opting outside to do things with family and friends vs. shopping in the malls or crowded retail stores on Black Friday. While stores advertise the Friday after Thanksgiving as their biggest sales day of the year (heck, some places talk about Black Friday like it’s a holiday itself), certain stores have also decided to be open on Thanksgiving and we may just have a problem with that.
There are plenty of ways to #OptOutside on Black Friday. You can even Opt out of Black Friday and visit a national park for free instead and according to this article, nearly 1 million people have since joined in on the idea, sharing photos and ideas of what they’re going to do instead of spending hours in store lines.
So if you are thinking about going out at midnight on Black Friday to wrestle those other parents for the Legos or Barbie Dolls as well as that must-have gadget (stuff or thing?) – or if you feel like frequenting those %&@* stores that have decided to notgive their employees the day off on Thanksgiving – this is a must listen for you. It may just change your perspective on Black Friday and the great outdoors – and the possibilities of breathing clean fresh air as opposed to, well y’know.
And in this great world of technology and the interwebs, you can always shop online – right…?