Best Buy is the latest national retailer to announce an early start to Black Friday deals, kicking off holiday savings the week before Halloween.

The company said the start of its Black Friday deals, which normally take place on the Friday after Thanksgiving, will begin on Tuesday, October 19 and run through October 22. The first offers will rely heavily on consumer technology.

Some of the offers shown next week, with savings of up to $ 180, include:

• $ 599 for a 70-inch Samsung 4K Smart TV

• $ 169 for Beats Studio 3 headphones in matte black

• Chromebooks starting at $ 99

• Windows laptops starting at $ 189.99

The retailer is also slashing a number of Samsung devices, slashing prices up to $ 540 on top-selling items.

When the calendar finally moves to November, Best Buy has announced that it will move Black Friday by one week, from the day after Thanksgiving to November 19. The company promises that “thousands” of offers will start on that day, some extending into the holiday season.

New retail trend

Best Buy is joining a trend in which retailers are launching offers earlier to help consumers cope with potential shortages and long-awaited shipping delays.

Amazon announced its Black Friday deals earlier this month, making them available sooner than ever. Amazon’s first offerings cover toys, home furnishings, and seasonal fashion. Offers include up to 30% off Hasbro, NERF, Barbie, Fisher-Price, and Hot Wheels games.

Target kicked off the holiday season even earlier, rolling out its offerings in August. Company executives have said that 85% of the toys in this year’s lineup will be entirely new. Topping the list are brands like LEGO sets, LOL Surprise! dolls, PAW Patrol, Barbie and Zoe doll. Target is also teaming up with FAO Schwarz, the world’s oldest toy store, for an exclusive 70-piece toy collection.

Reasons to shop early

Big box retailers are encouraging consumers to shop early in the year, not only to lock in sales, but also to avoid shortages during the holiday season, which could make many people unhappy.

Tara, from Springboro, Ohio, tells us that she has experienced delays when ordering on Amazon.

“The last things I ordered were all late, had to be canceled or reshipped,” Tara wrote this week in a ConsumerAffairs review. “I’d rather have a 5 day guarantee than a day or two after that because everything seems to be delayed.”

The New York Times reported this week that supply chain bottlenecks were showing no signs of easing. Walmart, Target, Costco and Home Depot have resorted to chartering their own ships, a move that the Wall Street Journal says could cause commodity prices to rise.