Black Friday

BLACK FRIDAY

More than one-third of all Americans are estimated to shop on this unofficial national holiday this year … which may trace its name to a famous American football rivalry.

ARMY-NAVY

ORIGINS

• 1869: “Black Friday” describes September stock market panic.
• 1950s – 1960s: Philadelphia police used the term to describe the chaos that erupted in the city from the influx of both holiday shoppers and football fans on the Friday before the Army-Navy game, held the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
• 1960s: Philly retailers started using “Big Friday” to rid the name of negative press – but it didn’t work.

By the mid-2000s, Black Friday became a nationwide financial phenomenon – then came the knockoffs …

• Cyber Monday began in 2005.
• Small Business Saturday started in 2010 as an AmEx ad campaign.
• Not to be outdone by web and local sales, some retailers stay open on Thanksgiving, too.

5-DAY WEEKEND?

More than half of the U.S. population (166.3M) – that’s how many people are estimated to shop during the 2022 5-day shopping weekend (Thanksgiving – Cyber Monday).

The National Retail Foundation (NRF) said this year’s record number “is the highest estimate since NRF began tracking this data in 2017.”

BIGGER PICTURE $

"While there is much speculation about inflation’s impact on consumer behavior, our data tells us that this Thanksgiving holiday weekend will see robust store traffic with a record number of shoppers taking advantage of value pricing."

NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. During November and December, Americans are expected to spend upwards of $942B overall, spending the most on clothes and gift cards.

Still hungry but not in the mood for leftovers? Today’s deals aren’t limited to boots and laptops; spots like Smashburger, TGI Fridays and Jamba Juice are also handing out major Black Friday discounts. Even Godiva Chocolatier is offering big discounts on select confections.

See ya, pumpkin spice ~ hello, peppermint!