… and there are bargains to be had….
‘Black and Friday’ are two words that are guaranteed to make shoppers’ ears prick up. Last year prices were cut and websites crashed, culminating in UK shoppers spending over £810 million pounds. What’s more, Black Friday 2015 is expected to be the biggest shopping day the UK has ever seen…
Originating in America in the ‘60s, Black Friday takes place on the Friday after Thanksgiving. The ‘black’ in its name indicates retailers coming out of the red and seeing a return to profit. And the low prices shouldn’t put consumers in the red either.
This year, make sure you mark 27th November on the calendar which, you’ll be pleased to hear, falls conveniently on payday for most. If you’re looking to get a head start, many deals will be available from Monday 23th, or ‘Cyber Monday’ as it is now known. The most shopped for items are those that are most drastically discounted — these are usually electronics and popular toys.
However, retailers such as Debenhams and House of Fraser cut prices on fashion and home items as well. If you want to avoid the stampedes, or just don’t want to move from your sofa, then most deals will be available online.
Last year ASDA made the headlines as hopeful shoppers queued for hours and trampled over each other to get through the door. For 2015, the supermarket has said there will be more cheap tech deals on items like TVs, Blu-ray players, Android tablets and other gadgets, as well as toys. This includes plasma screens for £139, Polaroid Tab 8 at £79 and Beats by Dr. Dre headphones for £79.
Technology stores are particularly swamped during the holiday as they usually provide shoppers with the largest drops in prices. GAME’s deals last year included PS4 DualShock 4 controllers for under £30. Similar deals are likely to be available this time round, but with 3,600 consoles being sold each hour you should make sure you’re prepared for the rush if you want to grab yourself a bargain. We advise signing up to email alerts to receive sale information from your favourite shops.
Amazon was one of the first brands to bring Black Friday deals to UK shoppers. The retailer said it will start to release information of the 2015 deals on offer on 9th November. Last year Amazon offered discounts throughout the entire week ahead of Black Friday so you won’t even need to wait until the 27th.
If you’re fingers are quick enough, Amazon will be offering great deals in electronics, video games,clothes and other items. Like last year, unprecedented discounts in time-limited deals will be available on Nespresso, GoPro cameras, big screen TVs and DVD box sets.
John Lewis celebrated its biggest sales week of all time last year, shifting one Nutribullet food processor every 30 seconds. Other deals that were snapped up included competitive discounts on the iPad mini and Apple MacBooks.
This year will see some attractive deals from Apple, partly because they’re so popular but also because there is room for movement in their prices. One of the hottest products on Black Friday last year was the iPad mini – which was selling practically everywhere for under £150 – and that will likely be the case again in 2015.
Black Friday means that there’s no excuse for late Christmas shopping — get ready to compete in this mega sale frenzy either in store or online.