WHO NEEDS BLACK FRIDAY?

Black Friday Is a  retail holiday which officially opens  the Christmas shopping season.  It is the day after Thanksgiving in the United States of America, it has emerged as the biggest shopping day of the year for consumers and retailers.

Black Friday in an ingrained part of the United States shopping culture, where retailers provide their customers with deep cuts in price, bargain deals, as well as ridiculously low prices on certain items.

The Black Friday tradition originated in the United States, media reports from 1966 state that police officers in Philadelphia first referred to the day after Thanksgiving as “Black Friday” as a result of the traffic jams and pedestrian traffic in the city’s shopping district.

For the police and the hordes of shoppers who converged on the shopping district , the day was “bleak”, therefore christened  “Black Friday”, Retailers not happy with the negative implications of the name put it out there that balance sheets moved into the black on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

Some stores open their doors at midnight on Thanksgiving night, while others open between 2am and 5am, encouraging shoppers to camp outside their doors creating the Black Friday camping.

The internet also plays a very critical role as retailers advertise their products price status online, creating a buzz  and enabling consumers plan their shopping on Black Friday.

Online shopping websites  have also provided an alternative for those wary of the hustle and bustle of the crowds, as a number of sites offer great bargain deals which are advertised on their sites, thereby making it easy for price comparisons.

Black Friday is the biggest shopping day each year in the United States except in 2004. According to market research firm Shoppertrak almost 138 million Americans are expected to pass through the checkout of various stores, with heavily discounted products, spending upwards of 50 billion dollars according to survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Black Friday is considered by some as “a one day economic stimulus plan and job creation programme “crucial to the American economy.

Black Friday has also berthed in the British stores, an American E-commerce giant, Amazon claims it introduced Black Friday to Britain in 2010, but it only actually caught on in 2013.  When ASDA a supermarket chain owned by Walmart, an American retailer opened its, doors to the concept and other British stores joined in. For consumers the benefits are enormous ,as prices of thousands of products are heavily discounted i.e. Clothes, Electronics, Computers, Household goods, Furniture, Sporting goods, Cars and Office equipments.

For retailers the volume of sales recorded on their particular day is a huge boost and marks the beginning of the spending spree as, consumers let loose on their purses and credit cards.

Nigerians been the big shoppers that we are, I am sure would appreciate it if this  practice makes its debut on our shores. Travel through Dubai International Airport or any other major aviation hub around the world and most black passengers you see in the airport laden with carry ons, backpacks, 2 or 3 duty free shopping bags are more likely than not to be Nigerians.

Airline staff have a herculean task getting all our excess hand luggage’s stowed away in the overhead bins. In simple language Nigerians love to shop, what with our extended families, coworkers and friends. And a need to get something for everyone.

A huge number of Nigerian retailers travel abroad just before the Black Friday sales to do their shopping for the Christmas season. This amounts to massive foreign exchange flight.

If these international brands are encouraged to  invest in the country by opening their store in the country, this would definitely reduce this capital flight and Nigerians can enjoy these deep discounts on Black Friday.

Unlike in the United States where retailers have an association called the National Retail Federation (NRF) comprising of thousands of retailers advancing the interests of the retail industry through Advocacy, Communications and Education.

The Nigerian version can be said to be the Chambers of Commerce spread around the country. There is a need for them to collaborate with other industry stakeholders like the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria or better still retailers need to setup a similar organization like the (NRF). To set aside a day or days in the year, when prices can be slashed and they give something back to the millions of Nigerian customers who patronize them all year long.

Retailers drive the nation’s economy by creating jobs and empowering the communities where they operate. They are a key barometer of the economy.

The recent interest expressed by Walmart to open a store in Lagos is long overdue and the Lagos State Government should do all in its power to make this dream a reality. It should also look at the experience of other countries where Walmart currently operates to ensure that it puts in place a clad iron Local Content policy before signing the dotted lines with Walmart.

I am sure that if Walmart berths in Lagos. Black Friday would have arrived on our shores for real. This would ultimately be a win win situation for businesses and consumers.