Black Friday 2021: When is the popular shopping event? What is origin of Black Friday?

The shopping event normally falls on the day after US Thanksgiving and sees retailers open early and offer huge discounts.

Research from the website Finder, suggests the British public will spend £275 on average this year during Black Friday, which is 7 per cent less than last year, when shoppers spent £295 on average.

Overall, the estimated total spend for this year is predicted to be £4.8 billion, compared to last year when the total spend was roughly £6 billion.

When is Black Friday 2021?

This year US Thanksgiving falls on November 25, so Black Friday will occur on November 26.

What is the history behind Black Friday?

The popular shopping day originally started as early as 1951 in Philadelphia, where it was used by police to illustrate the heavy pedestrian and vehicular traffic that would normally occur on the day after Thanksgiving.

In the UK, the term ‘Black Friday’ came from within the police and NHS to refer to the Friday before Christmas.

The day marks the start of the Christmas season with a variety of retailers offering big sales and discounts.

The earliest usage of the term ‘Black Friday’ refers to the financial crisis in 1869 where Jay Gould and James Fisk dominated the gold market on the New York Gold Exchange.

It has routinely been the busiest shopping day of the year in the US.