Goodbye Black Friday

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With more shopping moving online, Black Friday is dying at a rapid rate. 

Clint Grant | The Dallas Morning News

“I think the traditionalists will have a hard time stomaching that Black Friday is dying,” Josh Elman, a consumer and retail analyst with Nasdaq Advisory Services, told Business Insider. “But I think at the end of the day, the whole idea and concept of Black Friday deals in store will diminish over time.”

He continued, “Ultimately, consumers really want convenience, and they want to get their item and get out of the store quickly. They don’t want to wait in long lines. They don’t want to wait for a store to open anymore.”

Frederic J. Brown | Getty Images

According to the National Retail Federation, 99 million people said they shopped in stores on Thanksgiving weekend last year. This was a 3 million drop from the year before, and according to Elman, this number will only continue to fall. 

Meanwhile, 108 million people shopped online on Thanksgiving weekend the same year. This was a five million increase from the year before. 

Other than the shift to e-commerce over in-store purchases, another issue arises. People are becoming used to having deals available all year round. 

Tory Ho | Getty Images 

There is no longer a single day – the day after Thanksgiving – that retailers offer amazing deals. These deals are now spread out throughout the holiday season and the rest of the year, and they now appear online and in stores. 

However, Black Friday still helps to kick off a critical period for retailers. But, Elman mentions that the holiday season start date is inching earlier and earlier since companies are desperate to survive the “retail apocalypse.”

Offering Black Friday-like sales before Thanksgiving may assist retailers in boosting their business compared to rivals, but it also dilutes the importance of Black Friday as a single day for destination shopping, which affects the entire retail market.

“It’s a little sad. But it’s just a sign of the times,” Elman stated. “It’s really the paradigm shift that’s occurring. I think retailers understand what’s transpiring, and ultimately are doing everything in their power to meet customers’ needs.”

Sources