The holiday season of Christmas kicks off on “Black Friday” every year, which falls on the last Friday after Thanksgiving in November, this year on November 28th. This day marks a massive sale event for businesses, signaling the official start of the shopping season. Thanks to the efforts of businesses and the enthusiasm of buyers, what used to be just a one-day promotional event each month has now evolved into a month-long extravaganza known as “Black November.” Industry organizations predict that this year’s holiday sales in the United States will exceed 1 trillion dollars for the first time.
With the transition from a single day of discounts to a month-long event, consumers no longer have to wake up before dawn, camp outside of stores, and queue up to purchase high-priced items as in traditional sales.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the term “Black Friday” first appeared in the early 1960s in Philadelphia when police used it to describe the influx of suburban visitors coming to the city for shopping. This surge of people led to traffic congestion, accidents, and an increase in shoplifting incidents.
It wasn’t until the late 1980s that the practice of using “Black Friday” to signify retail sales growth became popular nationwide. At that time, “Black Friday” was hailed as the day when stores began to turn a profit and was considered the nation’s biggest shopping day.
The term “Cyber Monday” was first coined by the National Retail Federation in 2005. As online shopping became more prevalent, people started continuing their “Black Friday” shopping on Monday because workplace internet connections were often faster than those at home.
Today, Black Friday promotions can be found both online and in physical stores and may even start a few days or weeks before the actual day.
This year’s Cyber Monday event will take place entirely online on December 1st.
The promotions for this year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday events have been announced or are in the planning stages. We will provide detailed information on the major discounts offered by various stores in future articles.
According to Reuters, the National Retail Federation stated on Thursday, November 6th, that US holiday sales are expected to surpass 1 trillion dollars for the first time. The “holiday shopping season” includes Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, and other major shopping days, bringing in a significant portion of revenue for retailers.
It is projected that sales in November and December will grow between 3.7% to 4.2%, reaching 1.01 trillion dollars to 1.02 trillion dollars; compared to a growth rate of 4.3% and 976.1 billion dollars during the same period last year.
NRF’s forecast is based on an economic model that utilizes indicators such as consumer spending, employment, wages, and historical retail data, excluding sales of automobiles, gasoline, and dining.