Outdoor gear retailer REI, which plans to open a Chattanooga store next year off Shallowford Road near Interstate 75, made headlines when it announced it would close not only on Thanksgiving – but on Black Friday, as well – for the third year in a row to encourage its customers and employees to get outdoors during the long weekend that’s the busiest shopping time of the year.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, two hunting and fishing mega-stores with Chattanooga-area outlets along I-75 – Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s – will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day so shoppers can take advantage of sales.
What hours to keep during the Thanksgiving Day weekend is one question that shopping malls and giant retailers grapple with as they figure out how to make the most of the estimated 164 million Americans who will shop during the 2017 Thanksgiving weekend, according to survey results released by the National Retail Federation.
Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 11/26/15. Shoppers form a massive line waiting for JC Penny to open at 3pm on Thanksgiving day as the Black Friday shopping deals begin early again this year. 
Both upper and lower levels were crowded with shoppers on Black Friday last year inside Hamilton Place mall. The mall’s owner, Chattanooga-based CBL Properties, has opted to close its “market dominant” shopping centers on Thanksgiving Day.The survey found that 20 percent, or 32 million people, plan to shop on Thanksgiving Day. Black Friday will remain the busiest day with 70 percent, or 115 million people, planning to shop then. A substantial 43 percent, or 71 million people, are expected to shop on Saturday, with 76 percent saying they will do so specifically to support Small Business Saturday.
Chattanooga-based mall owner CBL Properties will close its “market dominant” regional shopping centers, including its Chattanooga malls Hamilton Place and Northgate, on Thanksgiving Day and reopen at 6 a.m. Black Friday for the second year in a row.