The ‘Black Friday’ sale has been gaining a lot of eyeballs. But where does this term come from and what’s the hype about it? Historically, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving in the United States. But since the past few years it has become synonymous with huge sales, bustling stores, and the start of the holiday shopping season. Is this the only reason for its hype or it has other key significance? Let’s have a look at what importance ‘Black Friday’ holds.
Black Friday 2024: What is black Friday
The term “Black Friday” was first introduced in the 1950s by police officers in Philadelphia. It was used to define the chaos which occurred on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Usually the city was flooded with football fans and shoppers arriving for the annual Army-Navy game on Saturday.
The roads were full of overcrowded streets and filled with retail sales.All these made the day challenging for law enforcement and local businesses, resulting in a negative connotation. So, from here the term “black” came, symbolizing the grim experience of managing the chaos.
However, things took a positive turn during the 1980s, when retailers started to work to change the negative image of Black Friday. They associated it to accounting terms. Notably, in accounting “in the black” means making a profit. This eventually made Black Friday known as the day ‘retailers moved from losses to profits, showing economic success.’
Black Friday 2024:Why is it celebrated
So, why is it celebrated? For brands/businesses, Black Friday is more than just a big sales day. For them it is the time for making money. Many businesses and retailers make a lot of money from the huge discounts that they offer during this period. Moreover, the sales make up a big part of their yearly earnings. In addition to this it can also bring other good opportunities. These includes the following:
- Companies bring big discounts pulling in millions of shoppers and leading to record sales.
- Many retailers use Black Friday for clearing out their old stock and make room for brand new items/launches.
- Special deals have the potential to attract new customers who might return later.
- Lastly,online shopping has succeeded in making Black Friday a global event
Follow FE Tech Bytes on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook
