There was once a time when shopping on Black Friday meant huge savings that day which drew in crowds as early as 6 o’clock in the morning. People would take the day off work to wait in long lines in the hopes of getting an amazing deal on an item that they may or may not “need”. The thing is, Black Friday has now turned into Black Friday Week. Or in some stores, it seems to extend to Black Friday MONTH. It’s important to know that retail stores use this time of year to “get out of the black” (hence the term “Black Friday”). Therefore, they will do anything they can to make money. If that means adding more sales to their stores in December, not just on Black Friday, they will. So, it may not be necessary to go shopping on Black Friday and be tempted to purchase items that day that may not even be on your list because you believe it may be the “best deal of the year”. Chances are, you will see many of these deals for another week, and possibly even into December. Canadians need to be careful with their consumer spending, even if it is a “good deal”.
What I’m trying to say is, just because there are Black Friday deals, that doesn’t mean that you need to go out and buy them. It’s important to do your research on items that you already know that you want to purchase for the season. Make a list and stick to it. Once the list is made, do price watching online. A little homework weeks in advance, before the frenzy, helps to sort through what’s a deal and what’s been gamed into looking like a discount. Retailers and manufacturers work to ensure profit margins don’t suffer, a fact surveys of sales and profits bear out. You may be surprised to see the same items on sale next week (for the same price they were on sale for on Black Friday). Now, if after your research you realize that you will get a better price on items you would buy at some point anyway to put under the tree, it is not a bad thing for you to join in on Black Friday (Week) deals. But don’t be tempted by other sales while you are out.
Just remember, the holiday bills arrive in January!
