Let The Shopping Begin

WASHINGTON (AP) — Shoppers no longer have to wait until Black Friday to cruise store aisles for holiday deals.

With online shopping available at any time of the day or night, many major retailers are opening their doors on Thanksgiving Day. Target, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Toys R Us and Macy's are among the retailers whose brick-and-mortar stores will be open by 6 p.m.

But, the decision to open on the holiday gets mixed reactions from consumers. In its annual consumer survey, the Deloitte financial services firm finds more than half of those surveyed say they disagree with stores being open on Thanksgiving and feel more loyalty to those who remain closed. Deloitte's head of retail, Rod Sides, says half of the respondents said they would hold off on purchases if their preferred store is not open on either Thanksgiving or Black Friday.

Meanwhile, Maine's attorney general is taking it a step further. Janet Mills is reminding state residents that Maine does not allow stores over 5,000 square feet to be open on holidays. The law has been in place for 52 years.