Is this the beginning of the Black Friday backlash?

It’s not the sort of thing that fills me with enthusiasm. Perhaps if it had a fluffier, more approachable name. Pink Friday or Stripy Friday or something. Black Friday – the day after Thanksgiving – doesn’t “come around” so much as it does “loom” and then “descend”. Many places now open their doors on Thanksgiving itself, forcing staff to work when they should be spending time with their families.

Settling over Thanksgiving like some great shroud of consumerism, it might have started out as a few great deals to inject some vim into annual forecasts (the date traditionally seen as an indicator of sales for the coming year), but now it’s marked by people camping overnight and queuing round the block before stampeding, trampling and fighting each other so they can buy a cheap idiot box for winter; offering themselves up for judgement by those who can afford to buy the latest iPad or a flatscreen TV all year round.

Diminishing returns

It’s a thoroughly divisive affair and one that is uncomfortable to watch or read about. We don’t traditionally celebrate Thanksgiving in the UK, but we certainly get a lot of messaging about Black Friday. The popular media, of course, loves it. It’s perfect fodder for columnists who have been champing at the bit to use terms like “throngs” and “hordes” to describe their peers in the checkout queue. After all, nothing says Christmas like a fight in a supermarket. One website even keeps count of the various deaths and injuries accrued over the day.

But the last few years has seen a ‘graying’ of Black Friday as it diminishes in importance. The most obvious answer is probably the right one here: that most of the best deals are available online. Why brave the baying hordes when can you do your shopping in bed? A recent Nielsen survey shows many Americans get their Christmas shopping started in September.

From my point of view, single-issue marketing is a risky endeavor. Whether it’s the local £1 shop, or SEO that crams in key phrases but doesn’t make sense, when you go to work with only one thing in your tool kit, you inevitably end up limiting your options. It’s hard to justify higher prices the rest of the year when consumers can just wait until November to make key purchases. And apart from anything else, what message does that send about the true value of your stock?

Last year saw several key retailers take a step back, as Costco, Nordstrom and others announced they wouldn’t be opening their doors early. One company has gone even further. Outdoor retailer REI is completely shutting down on Black Friday this year, giving all of its 12,000 staff a paid holiday. Of course it has also earned lots of positive publicity, but it is earned, not won. REI is living its brand values and leading by example with the sort of authenticity that has real long-term strength. CEO Jerry Stritzke told employees he hopes they will take the chance to “get outside” and inspire others to do the same. I couldn’t agree more.