It’s that time of the year again; you put on your best clothes, anticipate heated conversations between relatives, and sit down in your dining room to overeat. But as soon as we finish eating, we all know what’s next: shopping. Everyone will be rushing to the stores and trying desperately to get the best deal possible — or at least I will.
Black Friday; my favorite non-holiday. I’ve been going Black Friday shopping for as long as I can remember. What can I say, the day triggers the mass consumer in me! I love the excitement of it all; waiting in line with a crowd of strangers sipping on hot chocolate, kept awake into the night by the excitement of it all.
But I know that not everyone’s a fan of Back Friday, and I’ll admit, there are quite a few faults concerning the non-holiday. We had just spent hours thanking the universe for everything we have during Thanksgiving, and then immediately start buying new things that we most likely don’t need. The irony is not lost on me. And yes, Black Friday is the spawn of our capitalist American society; an attempt to drive consumer rates up. But to argue, is that bad? On a good year, Black Friday sales can boost the economy and create jobs.
But then there’s the problem with the timing. Every year it seems like Black Friday is starting earlier and earlier. My first memory of the event was years ago; I woke up early with my mom to go to the mall at six in the morning. Since then, I’ve seen store opening times inch up to 2:00 am, midnight, 8:00 pm, and this year it looks like most stores are starting sales at 5:00 pm or even 2:00 pm Thanksgiving day! Even I have to admit that it’s crazy.
But wait there’s more — the shopping doesn’t end on Friday. We still have Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday to look forward to! Now in all seriousness, I think Small Business Saturday is one of the best concepts to come out of all these capitalistic schemes. We should all be doing our part to support small businesses and there are many sites to locate small businesses near you (like this). But, if the thought of waiting in lines and dealing with all the chaos of Black Friday and Small Business Saturday is too much for you, you’ll still have a chance to get those deals! Cyber Monday is the cyber event of the year, with sales sometimes better than Black Friday’s. Plus companies will oftentimes slap on free shipping!
In reality, Black Friday is here to start off Christmas and retail season. In reality, you’ll be hearing about deals from now until Christmas day, so if you miss this shopping weekend, do not fret! You have plenty of time to go gift shopping for your friends or family (or yourself). I know I’ll be scoping out deals for a new TV this year. Whether you support Black Friday or not, remember that like most things, this non-holiday is not all bad nor all good, so shop your little hearts out and have a great holiday season!
Gifs via giphy