A million reasons to visit Old Navy

Perhaps the most aggressive traffic and sales generating promotional effort this Black Friday comes courtesy of Old Navy.



The Old Navy division of Gap, Inc., plans to open its more than 800 stores at 4 p.m. on Thanksgiving day and will price all merchandise at half off for 31 hours until stores close at 11 p.m. on Black Friday. And, if the 50% markdown isn’t sufficient to motivate shoppers, the retailer plans generate store traffic by giving away $1 million to one lucky customer and 1,000 $200 gift certificates.



The company calls the program its “Overnight Millionaire” giveaway because of the manner in which it is structured. The first 100 people who enter each store when the Black Friday promotion begins at 4 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day are given a game card and a chance to win the $1 million grand prize. In addition, 1,000 of the card recipients have an opportunity to win a $200 shopping spree by entering a text-to-win contest. The grand prize winner is randomly selected at 7 p.m. on Black Friday, thus the name Overnight Millionaire, while the $200 shopping spree winners are randomly determined over the course of the weekend.



"We are honored to kick off the holiday shopping season by giving back to our customers, who give to us all year long," said Steve Stickel, Old Navy’s head of stores. "We look forward to changing the life of the Overnight Millionaire winner, treating 1,000 customers to an unforgettable shopping spree and making everyone feel like a winner with our best deals of the year."