There was a time when Black Friday felt like an event. It was chaotic, communal, ridiculous, and, in its own way, rewarding. I remember my mom rushing to stand in line at Walmart to pick up some of the craziest deals you could ever see: a coffee maker for $20, a toaster oven for $35, a 65-inch TV for $49.99 (which, at the time of my youth, were insane and unbeatable prices). The doors opened, the crowd cheered, and for a brief moment, we were all in it together. Families strategized like they were planning a military operation. Friends ran interference in different aisles. Strangers worked together to stack carts or reach boxes on high shelves. You’d come home exhausted, triumphant, and convinced that you’d gamed the system.
Now? Black Friday lasts roughly as long as spring break, and the “deals” feel as inauthentic as ever. And because I’m finally grown with adult-money ready to chuck my wallet at any store, I’ve holding back because all of the deals I’m seeing – I’ve seen before.
Retailers start pushing “Black Friday or Cyber Monday Preview Events” in early November (and even some in late October) stretching the one-day only tradition into a bland, month-long drip of lukewarm discounts. What used to be an explosion the day after Thanksgiving, has become a marathon of sales that blur together, completely indistinguishable from the promotions we’ve been bombarded with all year. We’re already used to the terms “Site-wide sale” “Mid-Year Savings Event” “Flash Sale!”, so much so that I have fatigue of getting one great deal from scrolling through an infinite list of “40% OFF!”
And that’s the real gotcha: the deals aren’t true deals anymore. So many retailers quietly mark prices up before slashing them back down, creating an illusion of savings. That $199 air fryer is “marked down” from $349? It actually was selling at full price for $199 just two months ago. The shoes you’ve been eyeing all year priced at $59.99 is at a whopping 50% off, which is the deal price it was at the ‘Mid-Year Savings Event’ back in July!
Even the in-store rushes are outdated with the rise of online shopping and mobile app checkouts. You sit on your couch, open your laptop, and scroll. No spectacle. No stories. No holiday shopping rushes (or the photos you get from stopping by the in-mall Santa or Christmas Tree displays). Just a screen, a timer counting down on a deal that isn’t really a deal, and the feeling that you’re supposed to buy something because it’s the fourth Friday in November. I must say.. capitalism has trained us well.
The old Black Friday from my youth wasn’t perfect, but it was nostalgic. An total absurd experience that made the holidays feel a little more alive.
Now it’s another tab in my browser.
I’m not saying the answer is bringing back the 4 a.m. stampedes (because I really love sleeping in), or the long lines around the store the day before, but could we at least bring back a little honesty and more real deals? If Black Friday is going to stretch across an entire month and clog our inboxes with marketing emails, the least retailers could do is offer deals that are real.
Until then, the once chaotic tradition continues to leave me with utter disappointment.
