Why I can’t stand Black Friday

By Scott Thompson, Editor, Retail Technology Innovation Hub

I hate Black Friday. There I’ve said it. I know that’s not the done thing. I know I should be lapping up all the hype and frothing at the mouth as eye watering sales figures roll in. Brits are set to spend a record £4.5 billion during Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2017, according to research by price comparison site, finder.com. Yada yada yada….

Black Friday has essentially grown into a one-month promotional opportunity for the likes of Amazon. Which is great for the e-commerce giant. But from the customer POV, it encourages overspending, at a time when real wages continue to drop, with Brexit biting and the economy tanking. And for most retailers, it encourages short-term thinking. It’s also dangerous and tacky. Once a year, my local Sainsbury’s becomes a no go zone as casual punters descend upon the store and duke it out for reduced electrical items. Lovely.

So I was interested to see new research from Retail Assist, suggesting that the tide is turning. In order to analyse consumer sentiment, 400 respondents took the company’s Black Friday survey, powered by Toluna. For the first time ever, more people plan to avoid Black Friday this year (51%) than those who are planning to participate (49%). This is significantly lower than the same percentage as in 2016. Analysts have pointed towards the fact consumers have become accustomed to an ongoing discounting calendar throughout the year. Another reason for the declining popularity is a strong disdain for hype – 33% of respondents dislike Black Friday for this reason.

We haven’t seen the last of this orgy of consumerism, unfortunately. Last year, £1.23 billion was spent online on Black Friday alone, making it the UK’s first billion pound shopping day. Spanning an entire week, online sales rose to an estimated £6.5 billion. Like Arnie in The Terminator, it will be back. And back again. And again. But here’s to the possibility of the franchise dying out, as diminishing returns kick in. I’ll raise a glass of sherry to that.