Story By: Victoria Marin
While most were buying turkeys and making journeys to their hometowns, others were preparing for an event that has grown bigger and better each year: Black Friday. Black Friday is the one time each year when the deals are the best and the line is worth the wait.
This year, Black Friday began at 6 P.M. Thanksgiving day for Lauren Blake Nelson, Senior, and her sales team. Nelson works at a retail store at the San Marcos Premium Outlets and as a manager, had to prepare a team to help her run the store for their Black Friday sales.
“Preparations began about 4 weeks before the actual day,” Nelson said. “We hired an extra 20 employees and made schedules in advance to make sure we were ahead of the game.”
Employees were scheduled in 10-hour shifts from Thanksgiving day overnight into Friday. With employees in hand, the next step was preparing the store itself for bulk buyers and mass shoppers.
“Some of us were scheduled to work night shifts from about 6 P.M. to 1:00 A.M to stock the store, rearrange the floor and make plans of how to organize our shoppers on the day of,” Hannah Poling, Junior, said.
On opening day, employees gathered for a last minute checklist and mannequin challenge as a long line of customers waited for the clock to hit 6 P.M.
“I had to remind my employees that though it’s going to be a hectic 24+ hours, we can still have fun and our preparations will come through for the best,” Nelson said.
Needless to say, this particular store had a more than positive outcome, reeling in hundreds of shoppers and profiting over a few million dollars.
“I’m so very proud of my team and all the work they did to prepare for the day,” Nelson said. “It just goes to show that preparing in advance and putting a lot of trust into your employees works out well.”
