It is about time of the year again when massive discounts are offered to both new and existing customers across all product categories ranging from smartphones, electronics, kitchen appliances and many more, referred to as Black Friday.
The Black Friday refers to the day after Thanksgiving Day, a holiday on the fourth Thursday of November, and is symbolically seen as the start of the critical holiday shopping season.
For many wondering the origin of the name “Black Friday”, it was actually first associated with a financial crisis, not sales shopping. Two Wall Street financiers Jim Fisk and Jay Gould, together bought a significant amount of US gold in the hope of the overall price soaring and in turn, being able to sell it for huge profits.
On Friday, September 24, 1869, in what became referred to as “Black Friday”, the US gold market crashed and Fisk and Gould’s actions left Wall Street barons bankrupt. It was not until later years that the post-Thanksgiving period became associated with the name
Black Friday has become an important period for many retailers as they hope to offer discounts will boost their profits.
However, the increase in consumer demand and competition between retailers has led to an overwhelming amount of visitors to online retail sites and chaos in high street shops.
To help improve the process of sales and online deliveries, deal with competition and satisfy customers’ needs, retailers are now choosing to run their sales across an extended period, rather than the traditional 24 hours.
In recent years, a number of promotions and offers have started in the days building up to Black Friday, a move which has been dubbed “Black Fiveday”
In 2010, online retail giant Amazon introduced the concept to the UK, promoting a range of discounts and deals to consumers.
In 2013, supermarket Asda, owned by American retailer Walmart, later held its own Black Friday sale – one which resulted in chaos as customers physically fought for televisions and gadgets. Following this, Black Friday has grown significantly throughout the UK, with more and more retailers choosing to hold sale events.
In Nigeria, retail outlets and supermarkets are not left out in the excitement that comes with Black Friday sales as Nigerians are known shoppers despite the stuttering macro-economy.
Jumia, a major online shopping mall it is Black Friday for every Friday in the month of November.
According to Jumia, this year’s edition of Jumia Black Friday will start on 8th of November and it would be offering massive discounts of up to 80 percent off from its millions of products.
Shoppers will also enjoy amazing discount packages such as free vouchers; free shipping using Jumia Prime among others. There would also be Jumia flash sales.
Konga, another online shopping mall, Black Friday has been present since 2013. The shopping holiday called “Black Friday Yakata”, where customers find all kinds of products at even more competitive prices.
Sadly, online scammers have also taken advantage of the massive sales during this period to send spam mails to anxious customers promising them mouth-watering deals and telling them to provide information about their credit card
