What's Black Friday?
Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving and is widely recognized as the beginning of the holiday shopping season. It became a very popular term in the 2000s because it was used on online shopping sites to compete with physical store sales. It was adopted by both traditional and online retailers across the country.
What Does Black Friday Actually Mean?
Thanksgiving Day is the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Black Friday is the next most popular shopping holiday of the calendar year. Black Friday is a day when many retailers hold their best sales and deepest discount.
This term also refers to the accounting term "in red," which is about profits. While many retailers are profitable in November and December, they lose the most of the year (in the red).
Retailers moved the start time of their BlackFriday sales from Friday morning to the evening in an effort to extend the shopping day. This was done in 2014 as well as 2013. Some retailers even go so far as to start Black Sales on Mondays before Thanksgiving Day.
History And Origin
Philadelphia claims that Friday was first used as a name to refer to the day after Thanksgiving in the 1950s. The term was used internally by police officers at that time to describe the large number of pedestrians, cars and vehicles that clogged Philadelphia's shopping areas every year. There were many accidents and violent incidents among the people and cars that congested Philadelphia's shopping districts every year. To manage the chaos and maintain order, every officer needed to be present.
Earl Apfelbaum, a Philadelphia rare-stamp dealer, published the first known usage of Black Friday in 1966. The term was most popular in Philadelphia from 1966 until the 2000s. It was used in some other places in the 1980s.
The name was not used by the initial retailers, since black days of week were historically a reference to adverse events. A few examples include:
- Black Monday Oct. 19, 1987 -- The Dow Jones index fell 22 percent in a single day.
- Black Friday, October 24, 1929 The Stock Market Crash is historically regarded as the start of the Great Depression.
- Black Friday September 24, 1869 The original Black Friday was the crash of the U.S. Gold Market. At that time, gold was one of the most important trade markets. Investors of all income levels were represented and many went bankrupt.
Black is a negative association that retail stores have made. Accounting traditionally shows business losses in red ink, and profits or gains with black ink. Many retailers would be "into red" after the fall, but "into green" during the holiday shopping period.
To create a positive association, Black Friday was renamed "Black Friday". This meaning was accepted by shoppers, and it is more popular today than in 1950.
Black Friday Deals & Online Shopping
Black Friday is a great day to purchase consumer electronics like computers, tablets, laptops and gaming systems. For some shoppers, it takes hours to find a great deal. Some prefer to shop online.
Online shoppers can now take advantage of retailers' deals that begin simultaneously with in-store sales. You may be able find different door-buster offers from online stores, even if they offer a limited number of them.
Cyber Monday was created out of the desire not to be surrounded by people or in long lines. Cyber Monday is dedicated to online shoppers. It is the Monday immediately after. Every hour, there are special offers on specific shopping sites. Black Friday deals are often earlier than Cyber Monday deals. Online shoppers should shop around for the best deals.
Green Monday was added to the holiday shopping season’s list of special deal days. It is the second Monday in December and aims to draw shoppers still looking for Christmas gifts online or in-store.
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