Black Friday is one of the largest sales weekends every year, almost universally followed by shopping centers, websites, and retail companies everywhere. Originating in 1960’s Philadelphia, locals began calling the day after Thanksgiving, “Black Friday” due to the hordes of people in the city searching for holiday gifts and heading to Saturday’s football games. Department stores tried to label it “Big Friday” instead, but the attempt at rebranding failed, as Black Friday has become a household name when it comes to shopping for the holidays.
Traditionally, shopping had always been done in stores, markets or whatever retail place was most convenient for the customer. As technology advanced, the way shopping was always done, began to change. As of the 2000’s, placing online orders from the couch was initially used as a helpful tool for the elderly and disadvantaged.
While technology advanced at unprecedented paces during the turn of the century, using the internet to purchase goods became increasingly widespread. In the year 2000, 22% of Americans bought goods online. In 2017, that number jumped to 80%, with Americans “shopping online as often as they take out the trash,” according to the Pew Research Center.
In addition to the technological advancements in online shopping, the technology that people buy has advanced too. Companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Google all have products that never existed before the 90s. Cyber Monday, an extension of Black Friday’s sales, gained popularity over the Covid-19 pandemic, and now provides sales on specifically electronic products for consumers to buy.
The pandemic had a large impact on how businesses acted in the weeks around Black Friday and Cyber Monday. In 2020, businesses closed in person due to the virus, and online shopping skyrocketed. During 2021, no one knew how customers and retailers would react to the lesser concerns over Covid-19, causing unique outcomes. Cart totals were 13.9% higher than the previous year, according to Adobe Analytics. Inflation was also a problem, resulting in higher prices and lower discounts. Electronics were -12% prices in 2021, whereas they were -27% prices in 2022.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday provide an ideal opportunity for businesses and consumers to simultaneously benefit from holiday shopping, as consumers get great deals on expensive products, and site traffic, purchases, and profit skyrockets for the retailers. Only a few years ago Black Friday resulted in people getting trampled in the aisles of Walmart for a new Plasma TV, and now everyone can get whatever they need from the comfort of their homes.
