Target moves to keep doors closed on Thanksgiving

Target will no longer open its doors to customers on Thanksgiving Day. 

The department store, which currently houses over 200 locations in Florida including the newly owned Horizon West location which we told you about here, announced the change this week. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic last year, Target opted to keep the store closed for Thanksgiving 2020. Now, the store says the change will remain permanent. 

According to Target CEO Brian Cornell, the decision to close on Thanksgiving stemmed from the pandemic, but was also driven by Target employees who are eager to spend the holiday with their families.

Cornell, who visited several Target locations ahead of the announcement, wrote in a letter to inform the Target team.

"Several times, I heard how thankful [employees] were that our stores would once again be closed on Thanksgiving. And I knew in that moment that I had an opportunity to send a signal of confidence in the agility we've developed as a team over the last couple of years," Cornell said in the letter. 

The Target CEO continued on to say "I'm making it official: we're going to keep our stores closed on future Thanksgivings too. What started as a temporary measure driven by the pandemic is now our new standard—one that recognizes our ability to deliver on our guests' holiday wishes both within and well beyond store hours."

However, Target stores will be back in business on Black Friday, with many locations opening at 7 a.m. local time. Store hours and locations can be viewed here. 

Other retailers closed on Thanksgiving Day include Trader Joe's, Walmart and Costco.