Retail Stores

Getting a jump on other retailers, Toys"R"Us is throwing open its doors at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving night. The toy retailer said it would issue its Thanksgiving weekend circular on Nov. 24, offering more than 100 deals on 28 pages in newspapers across the country.

Wal-Mart competes with almost everyone in retail, but increasingly suppliers see the giant focused on a new and, to some, surprising rival: Amazon. Wal-Mart could use a bigger dose of what gave Amazon 44 percent top-line growth last quarter.

Urban Outfitters' third-quarter profit fell 31 percent amid a decline in same-store sales and as merchandise markdowns continued to weigh on margins. For the quarter ended Oct. 31, Urban Outfitters posted earnings of $50.7 million, down from $73.1 million in the year-ago period.

According to Forbes Insights, affluent consumers are planning to spend close to $1,850 during the 2011 holiday season, which is an increase of 2 percent over 2010 and 5 percent over 2009, with $1,100 earmarked for gifts for family, friends and other loved ones.

When it comes to holiday shopping this year, good things will come to those who wait ... as long as they don't wait too long. That's because the days with the fewest shoppers and deepest discounts will occur after the Thanksgiving holiday and its famous "Black Friday."

Sears stores will open at 4 a.m. Black Friday, reversing last year’s decision to open on Thanksgiving Day. Sears stores will remain closed this Thanksgiving to give its store employees and their families the ability to celebrate the holiday.

The lines between Thanksgiving and Black Friday are blurring this year and some aren't happy about it. More than 15,000 people have signed a petition at Change.org asking Target not to open at midnight on Thanksgiving as planned and to open at 5 a.m. on Friday instead to allow workers to spend more time with their families.

Wal-Mart quarterly profit growth missed Wall Street's expectations, as the economy continues to weigh on customers at Wal-Mart. Still, key sales at those U.S. discount stores rose more than expected, reversing a string of nine quarterly declines.

Dillard’s reported that profit for the quarter ended Oct. 29 soared a record 85 percent to $26.6 million, compared with $14.4 million in the year-ago period. Strong comps and contained expenses propelled the strong performance.

Body Central reported that net income for the third quarter more than doubled to $2.8 million from $1.3 million a year earlier. Total revenue rose 18 percent to $67.1 million, compared with $56.9 million a year ago.