Black Friday has become one of the biggest shopping events every year in the US. This event falls the very next day after Thanksgiving, giving everyone a chance to place orders while getting hefty discounts. On this occasion, many national stores give special sales on many items in order to attract more people to buy from them through the shop. To increase their sales, they also give similar deals online, which makes it convenient for people to shop while sitting at home.
A major myth related to the name Black Friday is that it comes from businesses being in debt (in the red) until the big sales after Thanksgiving, which helps them make a profit (in the black). Hence, Black Friday! However, this is just a saying, and it's not true.
The name Black Friday name comes from multiple reasons.
How did Black Friday get its name?
One of the earliest incidents that happened on Black Friday is the financial panic in 1869. In 1869, two men named Jay Gould and James Fisk tried to secretly control the price of gold in the U.S. They used their friendship with President Grant's brother-in-law to do this. They wanted to halt the government from selling the gold to make money. But the government found out and released an amount of gold, which caused the price to drop instantly. This made many people lose their money and caused a big panic on Wall Street. This day was dubbed "Black Friday."
The Philadelphia police started calling the day after Thanksgiving "Black Friday" in the 1950s and 1960s. This is because many foreigners came to the city to watch the Army-Navy football game and also shop, which caused huge crowds. It created problems like traffic jams, accidents, and shoplifting, due to which police had to work for longer hours.
A few years later, store owners tried to rename it "Big Friday" to make it sound better, but people still kept calling it “Black Friday.” Over time, the name stuck and became the busy shopping day we know today.
In the 1980s, people started believing that Black Friday symbolizes profits. As opposed to this belief, a greater number of stores made the most money on Saturdays preceding Christmas.
To add to this, there's one more story behind the name "Black Friday," which involves factory workers. Many factory workers began feigning illness in order to take long weekend leave after Thanksgiving. This made it hard for the factories to get their work done. Things like shipping and production started slowing down, which made the factory owners frustrated. Because it was such a tough day for everyone, it started being called "Black Friday" because of all the stress at work.
What one can expect from Black Friday 2024
This year, Black Friday is falling on November 29. Retail brands like Amazon, Walmart, and Target have already started their sales. Many fashion brands like Nike, H&M, Sephora, and Zara are joining in to start their Black Friday sale.
With up to 60% off on brands like Nike and 50% on H&M, it's the perfect time for shoppers to fill their carts and make the most out of it.
Now, there are many shopping days after Black Friday. First is Small Business Saturday, which encourages people to shop at local stores. Then, there is Cyber Monday for online shopping. There is also Giving Tuesday, which is a day for donating to charity.
In short, Black Friday marks the beginning of the holiday season and brings most profits.
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While Black Friday got its name from the chaos of the people and financial panic, now it's considered one of the most important shopping days. If you're looking for deals and discounts, this is the best time to order all your favorites for major savings.
Read more: Black Friday vs Cyber Monday: What is the better event to shop for Holidays 2024?
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