24/7 Wall St.

The Thanksgiving weekend, which includes Black Friday, has bedeviled large retailers. Do they open Thanksgiving night, or at midnight going into Friday? Do they pressure workers to work when they would rather be with their families? On the other hand, some workers would like the overtime. Regardless of how the retailers work, 137 million people hate Thanksgiving store openings

According to BestBlackFriday.com:

Of the 17.96 percent Americans who agree with stores being open on Thanksgiving, only 8.18 percent feel very strongly about it. Another 27.35 percent feel indifferent or do not care if stores open or close on Thanksgiving. Quite possibly the most telling stat is that 54.69 percent of Americans, which is nearly 137 million people, do not agree with stores being open on Thanksgiving. Of that 54.69 percent, 37.72 percent are strongly opposed to it, which accounts for over 94 million Americans.

Retailers probably don’t care about the results. After years of research, and years of experience, the largest companies work in their own self-interest, even if that is to make their workers happy. And each and every one has to deal with the fact that Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) is always open. While the sites of the brick-and-mortar retailers are too, the lion’s share of online shopping traffic goes to Amazon.

The research firm adds:

While Americans should spend around $3.65 billion on Thanksgiving this year, the majority plan on sitting on the sidelines. Nearly 151 million Americans, or 60.28 percent, will not be doing any shopping on Turkey Day. Out of the 39.72 percent who will shop on Thanksgiving, here is a breakdown of how they plan to complete their purchases.

• Online Only: 13.57 percent
• In-Store Only 14.37 percent
• Both: 11.78 percent

Surprisingly, more Americans plan to shop in-store only than online only. For such a big holiday, it would make sense that more Americans would turn to online shopping, which would offer them an opportunity to still enjoy the day with their friends and families and also get great deals. Another 11.78 percent plan to shop in-store and online, which is probably the best strategy to maximize total savings.

On a financial basis, there is a strong reason to keep stores open.