photo credit: Taylor Guzek
It’s 12 a.m. Friday, the morning after Thanksgiving. I’m standing in line filled with hundreds of people waiting for the doors to open. Excitement, curiosity and nerves rush through me as I wait, wondering what deals I can grab, except there’s not much left to enjoy about it anymore.
Black Friday, the major sales event, loved by millions, has been celebrated every year since 1869, but after 155 years things have changed, according to NBC News. Black Friday is known for being a chaotic, overwhelming but fun day. It was well known for having the best sales and the most shoppers. After the global phenomenon, COVID-19, most people and stores resulted in online shopping rather than in person, but I personally think that takes the fun out of it.
In 2018, Black Friday was at its prime. I remember being a kid on Thanksgiving night with my family watching the news. There were hundreds of people lined up outside the store, and I was listening to my family talk about the craziness of Black Friday. These days, no one talks about it and to most it’s just a ‘normal Friday’.
Shoppers used to save so much more than they do now. The more people shop in person, the less they tend to buy rather than online, when more deals come like free shipping. For example, the cart gets more and more full creating a more expensive shopping experience. Not to mention inflation, prices are far more expensive than they used to be, so people are not spending as much as they think.
Black Friday is no longer as special as it used to be; many stores and online shops have sales often. I get emails daily from stores saying there are deals. There is no need to anticipate the return of Black Friday for everything to go on sale when there are sales more than twice a week.
According to blackfriday.com, Walmart has multiple sales going on; Up to 50 percent off tablets and iPads, small appliances under $50, up to 70 percent off home essentials and appliances, up to 55 percent off outdoor Christmas decorations and lots more. Amazon has up to 40 percent off holiday shops and free prime shopping, up to 70 percent off last call deals, gifts under $25, Audible membership for only $0.99/month for the first three months and more.
What about Cyber Monday? It used to be that Cyber Monday was online only, but now some stores use the same or similar prices as it would be online. Therefore, there is not much difference between the two, so the point is lost. Most stores participate in both events using similar deals. It would be more efficient to keep it to one day or separating them out more to make a difference between the two.
People spent more on Cyber Monday rather than Black Friday last year. According to usatoday.com, shoppers spend $13.2 billion on Monday and only $10.8 billion on Friday; that is a 2.4 billion dollar difference.
Some ways to make Black Friday fun again: Take away the online portion, making it in-store only might bring back the craziness. Make Cyber Monday Online only or take it away, if we have Black Friday, why do we need another day full of sales? Or making Cyber Monday online only like how it used to be can separate the two.
