Does ‘black friday’ damage UK brands who take part?

Today is Black Friday and for the past few days organisations like Thomas Cook, Sainsbury, Carphone Warehouse to name a few have been using it as a sales promotion hook. But should they?

Black Friday is an American concept built around the unique holiday pattern that is Thanksgiving. Everyone’s on holiday, it’s under a month until Christmas and so it’s become a traditional day to spend spend spend. So retailers of pretty well anything, understanding how  many wallets loosen at this unique time, make unbelievable offers to draw in the masses.

But Black Friday in the US has become synonymous with unbridled consumerism, a concept that would have its founding fathers turning in their graves. But it has become such an occasion that some retailers have reacted against it. One retailer, REI, an employee owned outdoor and fitness retailer has shut its doors this year in order to encourage its staff and customer to spend more time outdoors, an idea that fits closely with its values. Values before profits, that’s a refreshing concept and an excellent way to build long-term brand value.

So what do UK consumers think about UK brands jumping on the US bandwagon? I think most see Black Friday as a day which promotes antisocial behaviour, fostering greed, irrationality and the pursuit of personal short-term gain. The near riots in Asda two years ago illustrates this perfectly, pitting consumer against consumer in the TV aisles, which made for uncomfortable viewing. After all, most people are uncomfortable with excess consumerism, knowing how it damages society and the environment, yet some can’t help responding to amazing offers, even if it means getting into a fight.

So if Black Friday s synonymous with these values, why do long standing well regarded brands like Sainsbury think they are doing getting involved? Even Asda, owned by US giant Walmart decided not to take part this year. Perhaps they realised that what works well in the US doesn’t necessarily work well here. I hope other UK brands realise this as well and leave these naive promotional strategies alone.

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