Black Friday is a craze that has only hit the UK in recent years, providing us with a variety of deals and discounts on goods just in time for Christmas. A trend that originates from Thanksgiving in the United States, we have now become accustomed to the footage of stampedes of shoppers at early hours of the morning. It is undeniable that the discounts in stores and online are incredible, with many using the sale to buy a whole range of household goods, not just clothes and Christmas presents.
But is Black Friday more trouble than its worth? Is it worth parting with some of our student loan by rushing through hectic shops next Friday?
On the one hand, Black Friday could not have come at a better time. We are far enough into the term that money is running low, yet there is a need to buy outfits for Christmas celebrations and purchase Christmas presents. Black Friday sales will extend over the whole weekend and online it continues for Cyber Monday, meaning there isn’t even a need to frantically rush to the shops to pick up the best deals. Clothes shopping online is particularly stress free as you can add filters and see exactly what is in stock in your size as opposed to trawling through messy clothes rails in stores.
However, Black Friday does have clear downfalls. Whether it is in store or online, the best deals do sell out incredibly quickly, making the experience often a waste of time. It often leads to buying items you do not really need, we all tend to buy that outfit for a non-existent event just because it was on sale, don’t we? Even on online clothing stores all the best pieces go out of stock incredibly quickly meaning the you are not left with the widest selection. In the UK Black Friday is much more of a clever marketing ploy by brands than a tradition – we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving after all!
Whilst some may say Black Friday is overhyped in the UK, there are too many good deals that you don’t want to miss out on. Online fashion retailers such as Pretty Little Thing and Missguided often do incredible deals, with Missguided offering 50% off site wide last year. Pretty Little Thing have had Black Friday ‘warm up’ deals all this week, with discount codes changing every day. This is not just occurring on clothes sites, companies such as Amazon and Beauty Bay are currently holding pre Black Friday sales as well. Online sites are often a relatively stress free way to find good deals on Black Friday. On Friday Eldon Square is open from 9am and it is expected that a large amount of stores will have good discounts available. However, this is nowhere near as hectic as the US, where shopping malls will open at 4am. It is a good idea to browse deals at more expensive high street stores such as Urban Outfitters as this is often where you can save the most money on a high quality product.
[pullquote]If you are in the market to buy some new clothes, some Christmas presents or even just large household items, Black Friday is the best time to do it[/pullquote] If you are in the market to buy some new clothes, some Christmas presents or even just large household items, Black Friday is the best time to do it. Love it or hate it, the deals brands advertise seem to get better and better every year making Black Friday the perfect time for students to have a shopping spree.