Old Navy Seeks to Lure Shoppers Away With Black Friday CE Deals

Black Friday week began with a flurry of doorbuster promotions, daily deals and some disturbing year-end sales projections for the CE industry.

CE sales in 2011 will fall “well short of expectations,” said a report from IHS iSuppli released Monday. A sharp downturn in spending due to “continuing economic chaos” will result in 1.5 percent growth in 2011 to $357 billion, more than 75 percent shy of expectations that topped 6 percent growth, IHS said. That puts even more pressure on Black Friday this year, though store traffic this week won’t be enough to make up for previous quarters, said Jordan Selburn, analyst for IHS. “While market conditions are improving in the fourth quarter because of Black Friday and the rest of the holiday selling season, this 3-month respite won’t be sufficient to salvage the entire year,” he said.

Pricing remains the most pressing issue in the “dollar-conscious CE market,” Selburn said. Consumer appetite will remain strong for CE equipment, but manufacturers will be increasingly pressured to offer their products at competitive prices, he said. “Eventually, price pressure will outweigh the growing number of pieces of CE equipment, capping CE market revenue in the process and slowing growth to a trickle,” he said.

As manufacturers look to capitalize on Black Friday, promotional deals for CE are showing up in both expected and unlikely places this week -- from clothing stores to drugstores -- we found in a scan of retail promotions for online and in-store shopping.

Apparel is the number one item consumers will be shopping for this holiday season, said a survey released last week by coupon website RetailMeNot, but retail chain Old Navy isn’t taking any chances on losing business to aggressive CE stores and their doorbuster deals at midnight on Black Friday. The Gap-owned clothing chain said it’s giving away a Kodak bundle, “while supplies last,” to shoppers who line up outside the store “prior to store opening” on Friday Nov. 25. The Kodak bundle includes a Kodak EasyShare Sport waterproof camera, a $10 off coupon for a Kodak 3D printer, compatible 3D glasses and a free Kodak Gallery wall calendar, according to the ad. A store associate will pass out an “extremely limited amount of available wristbands” -- one per person to shoppers 16 or older on a first-come-first-served basis, Old Navy said. The wristbands are good for one camera bundle “with a qualifying purchase of $40 or more and must be surrendered after purchase,” the promo said. Select outlet stores will open Thursday at 10 p.m. for the camera giveaway, Old Navy said, and store hours vary.

Old Navy is also holding a Big 3D Giveaway on Thursday. Few details were available on the website, which said, “Come in for a chance to win eye-popping 3D prizes like a 3D HDTV and DVD Player, a 3D gaming system or a 3D movie experience for the whole family.” No purchase is necessary for the giveaway, which is open to legal residents of the 50 United States and D.C. and Puerto Rico 13 years or older. The promotion ends at close of participating store hours on Nov. 24, the website said, “or while supplies last.” Interested consumers are directed to “see an Old Navy employee for official rules, including odds, and prize descriptions.” Old Navy didn’t provide more information.

Walgreens is launching its Black Friday deals on Thanksgiving -- in stores, online and by phone -- said a circular released Monday. The pharmacy chain is discounting a 19-inch Coby LED TV by $60 to $139, except to customers in California and Connecticut, where the TV isn’t sold. Walgreen’s is also offering an $89 bundle, combining either a Snapp HD camcorder or a 7-inch portable DVD player with a 7-inch 720p digital photo frame and a pair of Duracell-branded 2GB SD cards.

Kmart stores will have “at least five” RCA 8-inch portable DVD players per store on Black Friday, according to a Kmart circular posted on bfads.net. Prices are discounted to $49 from $69-$89, the ad said.

Dell is sweetening the pot for PC shoppers this week with rewards valued at $299 when customers spend $649 on a PC. Shoppers can choose from a Canon Elph digital camera or a $125 American Express gift card as a bonus. Adobe Photoshop and Elements software plus a Shutterfly digital photo album are thrown in, according to the Dell website.

Kohl’s has taken the price of its Polaroid 7-inch Android-based tablet to under $100, using a manufacturer rebate offer. The $99 tablet comes with an accessory kit valued at $20. The “early bird” price runs from 12:01 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, according to a store circular.

Even specialty AV dealers are getting caught up in the Black Friday frenzy. Gramophone, in suburban Baltimore, will forgo pre-dawn hours, but its customers can jockey for a limited number of 50-inch Panasonic plasma TVs for $799 during regular store hours of 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Black Friday, according to the store’s Facebook page. The retailer will ride the wave of Black Friday and Small Business Saturday marketing with a promotion giving shoppers $100 off the installation of a Sonos system, it said. Gramophone said the offer is exclusive to its store. Target began selling the Sonos system this fall, without an installation option.

Although 2011 began on a positive note, IHS said, with CE revenue up 3 percent year over year in Q1, the market “notably slowed in mid year as the global economy sputtered,” it said. Uncertainties surrounding employment in the U.S. and financial turmoil from the European debt crisis have held back purchasing in those two regions, the biggest CE markets in the world, IHS said. Portable media and MP3 player sales have been particularly hard hit this year, “now being cast aside” in favor of smartphones and tablets, IHS said. Even iPod shipments have suffered, with Q3 shipments down to 6.6 million compared with 9.1 million shipments in Q3 2010, it said.

A slowdown in LCD TV sales for 2011 is a big factor in this year’s forecast reduction, IHS said, with revenue expected to come in at $104 billion versus the predicted $110 billion. But the segment retains “solid momentum going forward,” it said. While CE revenue in Q2 and Q3 fell just short of their levels from comparable quarters last year, the trend is beginning to reverse this quarter as holiday sales of televisions and Blu-ray players top their levels from the same period in 2010. Growth exceeding 4 percent will occur in 2012 and 2013, and most CE segments should regain strength, IHS said.