Black Friday Decision

Black Friday is an industry lingo where various retailers come together to drop prices on their merchandises the day after Thanksgiving in the United States.

eCost, an online retail store, had a Wii game console for only $99, Best Buy had a five to ten percent off of several selected items, and Circuit City had an Olympus 8 mega pixel digital camera at the low price of $79.99.

Significant drop in prices lured a massive crowd, but popular items were limited and quickly sold out. According to the National Retail Federation, there was a 7.2 percent increase on this Black Friday weekend compared to last year.

Sodahead forum held a cyber poll asking the community if they were planning to go shopping on Black Friday. There were 254 respondents, ranging from teenagers to adults. The result was 52% of people were not going to go shopping on Black Friday, 28% were going to go shopping on Black Friday, and 20% were undecided, but leaning towards going.

The majority that were against shopping on Black Friday said that they were concerned of long lines, feared of being injured, annoyed by the commotion or did not have the money.

Joe posted, “No, I'll be working, don't care for crowds anyway, everyone seems to get too pushy and rude and all sweaty and too worked up, but I'm sure my wife will be out there.”

Rich posted, “Sorry I won't be going anywhere. In this current state of economy it's to risky to spend because you never know what's going to happen next.”

Bico also had financial concerns. He stated that he would not venture out on Black Friday because he is a poor college student, he can barely afford his rent, his work hours have been cut and he only received minimum wage.

Another anti-Black Friday commenter even compared the hectic shopping experience of Black Friday to being “mauled” by bulls on the streets of Spain.

Few on the Sodahead forum commented on how they enjoyed the Black Friday shopping experience. Many that admitted to going, confessed their anxieties towards crowded places. Several others stated that it was a part of a family tradition.

Ana posted, “Black friday is a tradition in my family. We all get up at the crack of dawn and rush to the stores. It's a good bonding thing we do.”

Lee posted, “I usually get up at 4 A.M. to start shopping, but this year a few stores will be opening at 4 am. So, I'll be getting up at 3 A.M. instead, but it's my favorite shopping day. I still get anxiety in crowded places though.”