Black Friday in the USA is a holiday for all customers. Amazing discounts and sales have become commonplace in the cities of North America. Where did this tradition come from, what and where can I buy on Black Friday - we will tell in this article.
In the USA, Black Friday is the next significant event after Thanksgiving, which is a national holiday for all Americans. This day is considered by many as the beginning of grand purchases for Christmas and New Year, the time of preparation for a long week of Christmas holidays. In many government offices and schools, Black Friday is considered a day off. Thus, the number of potential visitors to supermarkets, shops and other outlets is significantly increasing. On this day, you can make a long-awaited purchase and spend on this amount significantly less than planned. After all, Black Friday in the USA is a day of tremendous discounts and sales. Where did the tradition come to arrange such holidays for buyers?
Black friday tradition
Oddly enough, the first black Friday in the United States was not at all a joyful event. On this day, back in 1869, many Americans lost their own savings. The thing is that speculator James Fish tried to inflate the price of gold. Shortly before the black date, he bought up a huge amount of US gold reserves and tried to dictate terms to the treasury of his own country. By mid-1869, the price of yellow metal rose in price by 65%. But the US government made a lightning decision to stabilize the course by throwing available gold reserves onto the market. There was so much precious metal that the market collapsed immediately by 30%.
Gold Scam
A direct consequence of Black Friday was the depreciation of railway stocks, traditionally provided by gold. Instead of respectable securities of solid market value, in the hands of numerous investors were painted impaired securities of doubtful value. Although the main culprit of this scam was the winner, having earned more than three million dollars, he left the country for fear of prosecution.
Then black Friday in the United States first announced itself. And although there were other upheavals of the financial market after this event, the sonorous name was firmly fixed to the date of the failed J. Fish fraud.
Modern black friday
Black Friday in the USA was able to whitewash its dysfunctional reputation only in 1961. This date was famous for the first grand sales that took place in Philadelphia. People going shopping created huge traffic jams and paralyzed car traffic on many state freeways. Careful work with large trade associations with the direct participation of the state administration has become the foundation for laying a new tradition. Businessmen managed to transform the negative experience of big sales into a big celebration for all buyers of the country. Although the name "Black Friday" remained, but now this date carried a positive semantic meaning.
Tradition development
The question of how much Black Friday starts in the US is of concern to many Americans, since there is no clear rule in this regard. At six in the morning, and sometimes earlier, merchants open the doors of their stores to all interested buyers. In 2011, a new tradition appeared, which continues to be practiced today by Black Friday USA. The list of stores is huge: the supermarkets Best Buy, Kohl's, Macy's, Target, Amazon online sites opened their doors to customers at exactly midnight, thereby significantly increasing the flow of visitors and increasing their own turnover.
Other major trading empires - Walmart, Annonce - began to practice sales even earlier, in the evening of the previous day. But many Americans were outraged by this decision, and a wave of indignation swept through social networks, calling the behavior of merchants "greedy", "disgusting" and "shameful." Some states have banned early sales in the United States. Black Friday in Massachusetts, for example, cannot be started before a valid, "calendar" Friday.
Black Friday Risks
Nobody knows what discounts on Black Friday in the USA will be available to customers, except for representatives of trade departments. Therefore, often the languid expectation of large discounts increases the aggressiveness of customers, which provokes scandals and misunderstandings. When visiting one of the supermarkets in the city of Porter Bunch (California) in 2011, a woman used pepper spray, which caused trouble for a dozen buyers. In the same year, the Californians excelled again - an unknown in San Leandro shot and killed a Walmart store buyer. But in general, these events did not overshadow the joy of Americans about the magnificent sales of leading supermarkets. Millions of them are still leaving at night for the doors of stores to become the first customers.
Purchase returns
Having succumbed to hype, many buyers raked everything necessary and unnecessary from the shelves in a rush. And on Saturday and Sunday, they saw that they didn’t need or didn’t really need their purchases. Therefore, the opposite trend is observed at the weekend - a string of customers goes to stores to arrange a return of goods. And since all the returned goods have already been unpacked and fell into the Used (used) Open Box category, the stores will put it on sale again, but with big discounts. A re-unpacked product will be put up for sale only after a thorough re-check, so you can buy it closer to Christmas.
Cyber monday
Black Friday in the United States begins on the first day after Thanksgiving. But enterprising merchants did not forget about those who could not visit the shops this wonderful weekend, in 2005 a new tradition was introduced. She liked those who were unable to make the necessary purchases on Black Friday. For buyers who were unable to purchase the necessary goods, a cyber Monday was organized. On this day, a surge in online sales begins, which lasts all week.
Already in the first year of network sales, online shoppers saw in this way of shopping numerous benefits - speed, convenience of purchase and prompt delivery. All subsequent cyber mondays only confirmed the convenience of this form of sale for both buyers and merchants.
conclusions
Both Black Friday and Cyber Monday have provided potential buyers with a chance that is impossible not to take. Annual sales give ordinary Americans the opportunity to purchase goods at substantial discounts. Representatives of trade organizations have the opportunity to clean their warehouses from accumulated products.
In other countries, there is also a similar tradition - for a certain calendar date, arrange grandiose-scale sales of various goods at low prices. The end of the fiscal year and the approaching Christmas prompted marketers from all over the world to try to introduce black Friday in their countries. Of course, the scale of such an event is not comparable with the American one, but such goals will still pay off.
Perhaps in the near future and in our country will introduce a similar tradition. And even if it has nothing to do with American Thanksgiving, our compatriots will fully appreciate all the benefits that Black Friday gives its customers.