Holiday Central

Instant Pot sold out online? Kohl's CEO shares his tip to find it this Black Friday

Key Points
  • For Black Friday at Kohl's, the Instant Pot was notably marked down to $79.99 from $129.99 and included a $15 coupon.
  • It was sold out on Kohls.com by Friday morning.
  • Other retailers also were seeing brisk sales of the kitchen item on many shoppers' wish lists.
Source: Instant Pot

One of the most anticipated gifts of the year, the Instant Pot, was sold out on Kohl's website already by the morning of Black Friday.

But CEO Kevin Mansell told CNBC there's a way around that, using the retailer's mobile app and the option to buy online and pick up in the store, shoppers might be able to snag one. Of course, this only holds true if your local store is still in stock.

Mansell checked his phone for CNBC and said he was still able to purchase the Instant Pot online, picking it up from a Kohl's store in his area.

For Black Friday, the multicooker was notably marked down to $79.99 from $129.99 and included $15 in Kohl's Cash. The Kohl's Cash coupon allows a shopper to come back at a later date and use the $15 as they would cash.

Rival department store J.C. Penney was also sold out of the Instant Pot online, but discounters Target and Wal-Mart appeared to still be in stock. The device is also selling like crazy on Amazon.com.

Mansell told CNBC that the top three best-selling items for Kohl's on Black Friday were the Instant Pot, a Fitbit device and the Apple Watch. Apparel was also selling remarkably well, he said, with athletic brands Nike, Under Armour and Adidas leading the way.

He added that the retail environment remains "promotional," with competition from the likes of Amazon forcing retailers to slash prices.

For Kohl's, the department store chain hopes to avoid a "lull" in sales after Thanksgiving weekend by relying on the Kohl's Cash promotions, which expire after a set period of time, to lure shoppers back to stores for additional deals.

Kohl's is also kicking off "Cyber Week" Saturday evening, and for the first time will feature the same online deals all week long across its physical stores.

"You can't lean against the ways that consumers want to buy," Mansell said. But he added there are still ways to drive excitement around shopping in stores.

Instant Pot is a leader in the multicooker category, which has ballooned 56 percent within the past year and grew 85 percent the year before, according to NPD. Over the past three years, about 5 million units have been sold.

—CNBC's Angelica LaVito contributed to this reporting.

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