Changing the Tide of “Black Friday”
Ann Arbor, MI — The hustle and bustle of the holiday has officially started. Turkeys and pies line the shelves of your refrigerator, the cookie cutters and icing are assembling in the kitchen, the wrapping paper, ribbons and bows are making their way out of attics/basements, strings of twinkle lights are being checked for missing bulbs and store cash registers have begun ringing like Vegas slot machines. Yes, the holidays are here.
This Thanksgiving, we will travel to eat, drink and give thanks with our family and friends. After our bellies are full, dishes are washed and we settle into the living room, out come the huge stacks of newspaper and store advertisements. You sift through page by page, store after store trying to figure out which stores have the best deals, when they open and what type of strategic plan you can map out ensuring that you partake on all the deals. Welcome to Black Friday.
Black Friday is considered to be the largest shopping day of the year with many retailers calling it an actual “holiday”. The term was coined in the 1960’s to mark the kickoff of the holiday shopping season. The word “black” goes back to when accounting records were kept by hand and stores moved from the “red” (red ink to indicate loss) to the “black” (black ink to indicate profit). Toady this meaning has slightly changed. Most of the prized “doorbuster” deals are priced so low that the store does not actually make a profit on these items, but the stage is set for overall goal; getting you into the store and enticing you to buy more. Unfortunately buying more is costly to both your wallet and our environment.
Annie Leonard wrote the book and produced a small video called “The Story of Stuff”. In both,she analyzes the underside of our production and consumption patterns. In a country which is fascinated with the concept that “more is better”, this story exposes the environmental and social issues of buying and acquiring more and more stuff. We encourage you to watch this 20 minute video http://www.storyofstuff.com/ before you flip through the pages and pages of Black Friday store ads. We hope that this challenges your purchasing strategies of things you need, want, and desire this holiday season.
Tags: Black Friday, Holidays