Black Friday approaches, and Wal-Mart is prepared. Not only, however, is Wal-Mart prepared with ads and deals, but Wal-Mart is prepared with better security after last year's trampling death.
Ironically, Wal-Mart, like other retailers, is preparing doorbuster deals. While doorbuster deals aren't always worth the paper they are written on, the irony of the term "doorbuster" is not lost on the family of Jdimytai Damour, 34, a temporary worker at Wal-Mart who was trampled last year on Black Friday at the Wal-Mart in the Valley Stream mall in New York state.
As part of a settlement agreement between Wal-Mart and the Nassau County district attorney’s office, the retailer reviewed its crowd-management and security processes at all its New York state stores. It then submitted its new plans to independent security experts.
There will be several changes as Wal-Mart customers line up in front of stores. In fact, that is part of it: Wal-Mart customers will find lines in front of each store before the opening instead of crowds. There will be a “crow’s nest” where a worker can monitor crowds from above, staff dedicated to crowd management, and barriers with safety zones.
Despite the recession, and concerns over job less, a holiday shopping survey from Accenture found that 52 percent of consumers surveyed said they planned to shop on Black Friday this year. That would be up from 42 percent last year. Some have said that the crowds and hassle make Black Friday sales "not worth it," but many feel the savings are worth the effort.
Still others, rather than enduring Black Friday lines, will shop on Cyber Monday, instead. Safety should be considered first, Wal-Mart said, at least in the wake of last year's tragedy.
Wal-Mart spokeswoman Daphne Moore said “Customer and associate safety is always a top priority for us. This holiday season is no exception.”
Written by Michael Santo
HULIQ.com
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