A quirk of the calendar means there are six fewer days between Black Friday and Christmas Day this year than there were in 2018. The last time there were only 26 days to score big sales was in 2013, and retailers panicked, pushing "holiday creep" to its limits by offering sales earlier than ever, opening their doors earlier, and holding marathon sales events over the Thanksgiving Day weekend where they didn't close their doors for days.
Although Christmas is always a make-or-break season for retail, this year a number of retailers really need to score big on Black Friday if they ever hope to recover. Because consumers can exercise their discretion on where they shop, retail's plight is already bleak, so a winning start to Christmas shopping could give these stores necessary breathing room to get their recovery going.
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