Target's Jump on Black Friday Starts on Halloween 2021-10-28 (2)

Target announced Thursday that its "Black Friday" holiday deals will kick off on Halloween—nearly four weeks before actual Black Friday.

The Minneapolis-based retailer is looking to seize on customer enthusiasm for all things holiday and meet consumers' stronger appetite for shopping early this year, which is spurred by concerns that supply-chain issues may mean they're out of luck if they wait too long to shop. Seventy-five percent of respondents to Deloitte's 2021 Holiday Retail Survey, results of which were released last week, said they're concerned about stockouts this year. Forty-five percent said they plan to spend at least as much this holiday season as last across categories.

New this year, Target will reveal weeklong "Holiday Best" deals, available in stores and online, every Sunday beginning Oct. 31. "Whenever guests see a deal advertised as 'Holiday Best' at Target, they can rest easy knowing they are getting the retailer's best planned price of the season," the retailer stated in a news release. That offering complements Target's existing Holiday Price Match Guarantee, which lets customers get a price adjustment on their Target holiday purchases through Dec. 24, and the retailer's offer to price-match select competitors (including Amazon and Walmart). 

Target will also add extra Holiday Best deals Nov. 4-6—overlapping with Walmart's first Black Friday Deals for Days event of the season, which runs Nov. 3-5. Special offers during Target's Nov. 4-6 Holiday Best promotion include a $99.99 Ninja Kitchen System with Auto IQ Boost and seven-speed blender (originally $199.99) and a $49.99 Keurig K-Mini (regularly $89.99). "Guests can expect offers on hundreds of top gifts across electronics, toys, kitchen appliances, floorcare, apparel, beauty and more," the retailer stated.

"We know many of our guests are looking to shop early this season and that value is incredibly important to them, especially during this time of year," Target EVP and Chief Growth Officer Christina Hennington said in the news release. Earlier this week, Target highlighted multiple efforts to make holiday shopping more frictionless for customers, including recently launched item-substitution functionality through the Target app, a "Forgot Something" feature that lets customers stack orders for one pickup, more assigned parking spots for Drive Up orders and the option to designate a "shopping partner" who can pick up online orders.

"Our guests love the convenience of our same-day services, and we've seen tremendous growth in these offerings over the past year, driven by continued investments in our amazing team members and our stores," Target Chief Stores Officer Mark Schindele said. "With even more flexibility in these options this holiday season, we're ready to make our guests' Target runs easier than ever."