Black Friday is a growing holiday tradition, having originally started in the United States and now spreading to countries like Canada, the UK, and other parts of the world. Here are 5 quick things that you may not know about Black Friday history.
It Has Roots going back as far as the early 1950s
It’s true. Black Friday’s beginnings trace back to 1952 when it was considered the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. This involved many retailers opening early and offering promotional sales in an attempt to heighten revenues. Since 2005, Black Friday has been widely recognized as the busiest shopping day of the year.
Spending on Black Friday Fell in 2014
Every year, Black Friday sales have risen and risen most years however the economic recession in 2008 saw numbers decrease and then again in 2014. In 2014, Black Friday weekend sales were down 11 percent. Why this was, nobody quite knows as the economy was in excellent shape at the time. Many suggest that retailers push to spread out promotions over the lead-up to Christmas resulted in less fixation on a single weekend.
The Term ‘Black Friday’ originated in Philadelphia
The earliest use of the Black Friday phrase has been dated to Philadelphia as early as 1961 and possibly before. The term was used at that time to describe the pedestrian and vehicle traffic that disrupted the City of Philadelphia in the wake of Thanksgiving. By the late 1980s, many retailers were using this term privately to describe the time of year when they began to turn a profit, thereby going from the red to the black.
7 People have Died in Black Friday-related Events
Tuning into the news the evening of Black Friday, it’s obvious the hysteria, panic, and violence that takes place on this day.
Since 2005, there has been 7 reported deaths in the United States from Black Friday related events. There have been an additional 98 injuries in this same time period in the United States though this number is questionable and is suspected to be far higher.
How Black Friday in Canada came to be
Black Friday used to be mainly an American phenomenon. Canadians living within hours of the Canada-US border would leave Canada on these days to pick up on the deals down south. When retailers in Canada picked up on this, beginning roughly in 2009, Canadian retailers began to offer their own Black Friday sales in an attempt to keep more consumers on this side of the border. By 2012, Black Friday in Canada grew to become just as relevant to Canadians as it has to Americans in the United States.
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