Holiday shoppers in Hawaii will get an even earlier start on the gift-buying season this year with a slew of retailers welcoming bargain hunters on Thanksgiving.

Major department stores, including Macy’s and Sears, will open on Thanksgiving, Nov. 28, at 8 p.m., as will big-box chains such as Target in their earliest openings ever.

Kmart will unlock its doors at 5 a.m., while Walmart will remain open 24 hours.

At this rate, shoppers hoping to get in on Black Friday deals will have to eat their turkey for lunch.

"It’s an extremely competitive environment," said Fred Paine, general manager of Pearlridge Center. "They’ve opened earlier and earlier, and when they do, people are there. Our shoppers love it. It takes the pressure off of standing in line, so it is a convenience for our shoppers. Everybody has Thanksgiving off, and people are looking for things to do, and what’s better to do than shop?"

Traditionally, Black Friday has been the kickoff to the holiday buying season, with stores opening as early as 5 a.m. But in the past several years, retailers have pushed opening times into Thanksgiving Day.

There’s more pressure on retailers this year because the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas is six days shorter than in 2012.

The stakes are high for retailers since the holiday season accounts for up to 40 percent of their annual revenue. The National Retail Federation, the nation’s largest retail trade group, expects an increase of 3.9 percent to $602.1 billion in holiday sales for the November-December period, up from 3.5 percent last year.

As for employees running the holiday shift, Target said it "works closely with its team members to understand scheduling preferences" and pays such workers time and a half.

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The Los Angeles Times and Associated Press contributed to this report.