Big promotions targeted for “Black Friday” in an uncertain economic climate – 11/25/2023 at 05:27

The hunt for “Black Friday” bargains is in full swing on Friday, particularly in the United States where stores are posting discounts of up to 75% in an economic environment that is better than expected, but plagued by uncertainties.

A thousand people passed through the doors of the historic Macy’s department store in Manhattan at 6 a.m. (11:00 GMT).

“Sweaters, makeup, a jacket… There are great promotions,” rejoiced Shira Clements, 27, who came with her friend Dani Ditchek, 26.

“It’s nicer” to come to the store than to buy online. “We spend time together. It’s a real experience,” they add.

Raf, a 23-year-old musician, is smiling from ear to ear: he has just bought the TV of his dreams — 165 cm — for $500.

“But the salespeople were very insistent, much worse than usual,” he says. “It was quite annoying. It almost made me not want to buy.”

Ledian Brisku, an Albanian working in finance in London, got $300 off the $1,200 cost of his new computer. “My mother called me this morning to tell me it was Black Friday,” explains this 27-year-old vacationer.

Shay, 14, and her friend Lai, 13, are interested in skincare and clothing. Their budget? “Less than 100 dollars” for the first and “less than 40 dollars” for the second.

For Cristina Carradero, from Puerto Rico, “Black Friday” is a tradition with her mother. She leaves Macy’s with a ring for her thirtieth birthday, “with a very nice promotion”.

– Useful shopping –

Customers shop at Macy’s during “Black Friday” in New York, November 24, 2023 (AFP / Yuki IWAMURA)

The fever linked to this traditional day of promotions had already gripped American windows and online stores for several weeks. Especially this year, from October.

“Retailers are worried. They are trying to capture consumer spending early to make sure they get it,” notes Randy Allen, professor of management at Cornell University.

The “biggest discounts are expected for + Black Friday + and + Cyber ​​Monday +”, specifies Adobe Analytics, e-commerce specialist, estimating that “Cyberweek” – from November 23 to 27 – should bring in a total of 37.2 billion on the internet (+5.4%) in the United States.

As of 6:30 p.m. (10:30 p.m. GMT), American consumers had spent $7.3 billion online, up 7.4% from last year. The expected total for this day of promotions is between 9.5 and 9.8 billion, which would constitute a new record, according to data from Adobe Analytics.

Toys are experiencing the strongest increase, ahead of jewelry, cosmetics and electronics.

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), more than 182 million people are expected to shop in stores and online during Cyberweek, 16 million more than in 2022.

It did not make an amount forecast for this period, but anticipates sales for the holiday season (November-December) of up to 966.6 billion (+4%).

Many consumers limit themselves to shopping for end-of-year gifts, according to the NRF.

Around 182 million people are expected to buy during “Cyber ​​Week” (AFP / Yuki IWAMURA)

“Customers will look for the items they really want and need rather than buying a lot of things on impulse,” says Neil Saunders, director at GlobalData. “Which is not necessarily good for traders.”

For their part, “the brands are cautiously making targeted discounts rather than vast all-out promotions,” he adds.

Their objective is above all to sell off their stocks, according to analysts.

– Exported tradition –

The much-heralded recession has not materialized and the American consumer has shown itself to be particularly “resilient”, underline several experts, but macroeconomic uncertainties call for caution.

On the positive side: the unemployment rate remains stable at historically low levels.

“Employment has been the backbone of the American economy since the start of the year,” underlines Zachary Warring, analyst at CFRA Research.

Customers buy televisions in a supermarket during the “Black Friday” sales, an American tradition that has been exported across the world, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, November 23, 2023 (AFP / NELSON ALMEIDA)

“Black Friday” was exported, particularly to the United Kingdom, where Hargreaves Lansdown expected a “difficult” edition in a “super difficult” environment.

In the video games section of a store in the center of Paris, Noam Terki, 19, examines the promotions on Playstation consoles.

The medical student does not rule out going up to “600-700 euros, if we are talking about gifts”, he explains to AFP.

“It was really from 2019 that we saw an effect of these promotions” among French consumers, analyzes Jean-Yves Gras, director of the Colissimo delivery service.

The American online commerce giant Amazon was affected on Friday by a strike in around thirty countries (France, United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Japan, etc.), its employees demanding better working conditions.

“This day of action grows bigger every year because the movement to hold Amazon accountable continues to grow and strengthen,” commented the international union federation UNI Global Union in a press release.