Events

New York -- Procrastinating is out this year when it comes to holiday shopping, with most consumers (62%) planning to finish their gift buying on or before Dec. 16, according to a survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers.

As in most years, the top shopping day of the year is expected to be Black Friday. However, Cyber Monday will follow close behind across most demographic groups, overtaking Super Saturday as the second busiest holiday shopping day of the year.

H&M plans to hold a ribbon-cutting celebration marking the opening of a 42,000-sq.-ft. store in New York City’s Times Square at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 14. On hand to help light the H&M logo at the top of 4 Times Square will be global superstar Lady Gaga.

Procter & Gamble Canada has announced that Emmy-nominated actress Christina Hendricks will host the fifth annual P&G Beauty & Grooming Awards Dec. 2.

Best known for her portrayal of “Joan Holloway” on AMC’s series “Mad Men,” the former model will grace the stage as P&G celebrates the best Canadian editorial and creative talent in beauty, fashion and grooming. Hendricks joins Nia Vardalos, Queen Latifah, Kim Cattrall and Rob Lowe who have served as previous hosts.

Games, giveaways, book signings and personalized recommendations will be offered as part of “Discovery Friday,” event Barnes & Noble has planned for November 22 to pre-empt the doorbuster madness that will occur the following week on Black Friday.

Post Foods' Honey Bunches of Oats has enlisted pop duo Domino Saints for its latest ad campaign geared toward Hispanic markets. The pop duo from San Juan, Puerto Rico, collaborated in the exclusive "Smile While You Shake It" music video.

Inspired by samba beats, the song and signature dance incorporate the cereal box and breakfast utensils as percussion instruments. National bilingual media, social media and website (bunchofbeats.com) encourage consumers to upload their own versions of the dance, share them digitally, and be eligible to win prizes.

Atlanta – The Home Depot is taking steps to make amends for a racist tweet it sent from its official account on Nov. 7. The tweet, a promotion aligned with ESPN college football coverage, showed a photo of two African-Americans playing the drums along with a person wearing a gorilla mask and the caption: “Which drummer is not like the others?”

Richfield, Minn. – Best Buy is the latest major retail chain to prepare for an early start to Black Friday. More than 1,000 Best Buy stores in 47 states will open their doors at 6 p.m. Thanksgiving night and stay open till 10 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 29.

Charlotte, N.C. -- Belk stores will open at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. From 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 28 through 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 29, stores will offer more than 350 early bird specials while quantities last The promotion will feature hundreds of special deals in every department.

The first 250 customers at each store at the 8 p.m. opening on Thanksgiving will receive a free Belk gift card with a value ranging from $5 to $1,000, and with a guaranteed $1,000 gift card winner in each of the company's 301 stores.

Lakewood, Colo. -- Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage is opening its second store in Idaho, which will be located in Idaho Falls. The store opens for business on Nov. 12.

"We invite the Idaho Falls community to come in see what we're about," said Kemper Isely, Natural Grocers co-president. "While they are here, shoppers can also take part in a free nutritional education seminar- or pick up some practical ideas for healthy eating during one of our free cooking demonstrations."

Santa may need to send his suit to the dry cleaners next week after Belk gets a jump on Christmas by hosting an event called Santafest on Saturday, November 16.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based department store chain operates 301 stores in 16 southern states, more than half of which are located in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. It can be quite warm and humid in the Southeast well into November with hurricane season not officially ending until November 30.