As the holiday season approaches and families come together to celebrate, Black Friday promised to bring unbelievable sales and discounts for the holiday shopping season. However, in recent years, the long lines and camped-out shoppers began to disappear, and the hype around Black Friday seems to be dying out.
Many have begun to notice the alarming lack of “unbeatable sales.” Indeed, research has begun to show that Black Friday discounts are not the best sales of the year anymore. Chip Lupo, a WalletHub analyst, said, “WalletHub found that around 36% of Black Friday items offer no real savings for consumers compared to their usual prices, but the items that are on sale are an average of 24% off, with the highest markdown at 87%.”
Budgeting expert Andrea Woroch from CNBC Make It also said that, “Retailers are constantly fluctuating prices. So they may repackage something and say it’s on sale for Black Friday when, in reality, it was the same discount a few weeks ago.” Woroch explained that winter apparel is actually cheapest after Christmas, and furniture is cheapest after Presidents’ Day.
Black Friday sales often rely on a concept called “spavings,” a ‘spend to save’ concept. Stores promote deals like buy two get one free, which may seem like you are getting a free commodity, but in reality, it tricks consumers into spending more.
Furthermore, holiday sales are turning to increasingly online avenues. Cyber Monday has made a huge impact after its commencement in 2005. In an editorial, Inklings claimed that in 2023, 52% of consumers skipped Black Friday altogether. Cyber Monday used to be Black Friday’s sidekick, but is now beginning to take up the center frame. Many are beginning to feel that Cyber Monday is removing the personal feel of the holidays. The constant digitization of everything is beginning to feel old as people crave the personal physical aspect of holiday shopping.
Whether or not Black Friday fades into obscurity is unlikely to destroy holiday consumer culture. However, it may have a significant impact as households struggle to buy goods and retailers struggle to find demand. The middle class makes up the majority of the economy. Ensuring that enough demand is generated from them is essential to the sustainability of our economy, and as sales begin to die out and consumers lose interest, it raises questions about the future of holiday shopping and a healthy economy.
