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LAYTON – The Layton Hills Mall will be closed on Thanksgiving Day in an effort to welcome back both the Thanksgiving and Black Friday spirit.
In recent years, malls and department stores have opened earlier and earlier, pushing Black Friday into Thanksgiving and requiring employees to miss a good portion of the holiday. This year several shopping centers — most notably the Mall of America — have chosen to break from tradition by closing on Thanksgiving.
Stephen Lebovitz, president and CEO of CBL & Associates Properties Inc., owner of the Layton Hills Mall and others, issued a letter to consumers explaining why its properties will be closed on Thanksgiving.
“Over the last few years, we’ve watched as the magic of Black Friday has been diminished by an earlier start to the holiday shopping season. Gone are the days of waking before dawn to hunt for deals and doorbusters,” Lebovitz said.
To restore the tradition, CBL has chosen to open its properties at 6 a.m. the day after Thanksgiving.
“We want to have that family time for all of our tenants and our customers, so they can spend those days with their families,” said Linda Kelley, senior general manager of Layton Hills Mall. “My feeling is that the people that respect that, they’ll be here on Black Friday morning.”
Related:
The new Thanksgiving tradition: A quick meal then off to the stores
For some, the opportunity to get a good deal was enough to leave the Thanksgiving table and begin the shopping season.This will be the first time in four years that the store will stay closed for so long, having previously opened at midnight the day after Thanksgiving or even earlier on the actual holiday. Yet, according to Kelley, staying open on Thanksgiving hasn’t significantly profited the shopping center.
“Hopefully some other developers and some other malls continue and do the same thing … and this will become a trend,” Kelley said.
CBL is using the hashtag #MakeThanksgivingYours to promote and share the news.
“So enjoy that extra plate of pie at dinner, take a long afternoon nap, set your alarm and wake up with us to bring back the magic of Black Friday,” Lebovitz said.
Liesl is a student at Brigham Young University and currently works as a news writing intern for KSL.com. You can email her at lieslnielsen@gmail.com.
