My View: Why Black Friday means dark days for me

It used to be the New Year’s Day sales, then it was the pre-Christmas sales and now it is November 27, dubbed Black Friday.

It seems our dogged determination to bag a bargain is getting earlier and earlier each year.

We are all familiar with pictures of the queues outside stores on New Year’s Day as shops heavily discount their stock and customers camp out on the streets ready to do battle with other shoppers to get the best offer.

As stores became increasingly keen to up their Christmas sales, they started to discount before Christmas.

Now, it seems with all things Christmas-related discounting has started even earlier.

Black Friday is another import from America and is the name for the reductions in shops the day after Thanksgiving.

It seems somewhat ironic that an event that has its origins in the Pilgrim Fathers giving thanks for their first harvest is now followed by an exhibition of commercialism at its height.

Since 2006, there have been seven reported deaths and 98 injuries throughout the United States on Black Friday and it is common for prospective shoppers to camp out over the Thanksgiving holiday in an effort to secure a place in front of the line and thus a better chance at getting desired items.

It first arrived on our shores in 2003 
and has been growing 
in popularity ever since.

However, this year supermarket giant Asda has declared it isn’t going to take part in Black Friday, instead saying it is going to offer discounts all year round.

And in reality isn’t this what people want,

In fact with many online retailers running Black Friday deals all week and beyond, with the onset of so-called Cyber Monday, many believe this could be the beginning of the end for Black Friday.

And I for one don’t think that’s a bad thing.

I love a bargain as much as the next person, but I would rather be able to plan my purchase. The frenzy that surrounds Black Friday runs the risk of people making impulsive purchases they just don’t need. If you are after a particular item then by all means take advantage of the offers, but be aware that the retailers’ aim is to lure you into making other purchases which you might regret later. Shoppers are put under pressure to take advantage of the seemingly huge bargains when there is no guarantee the prices won’t drop further as we head closer to Christmas.

What we really need is transparency and confidence that the bargains on offer are all that 
they seem.

Twitter@ypcscott