There are projections of increased sales, but prices could be higher due to several factors.
Black Friday has been one of the main shopping dates in the world for several years, mainly in the country where it was born: the USA.
The National Retail Federation of that country indicated that the sector expects to break sales records this season and pointed out that consumers are “starting earlier than ever” to buy their products, with many more people willing to go to physical stores than last year. last.
However, in this second pandemic edition, some changes are seen. One of the country’s department stores, Target, decided that it will never open its stores again on Thanksgiving Day tomorrow, making a measure taken last year due to the pandemic into a “new norm”. The company closed its doors for the holiday in 2020 to avoid crowds, as many Americans leave stores after eating the traditional roast turkey in what is considered the early start of the holiday shopping season, right in the hours prior to Black Friday.
Other large retailers such as Walmart and Best Buy, and even popular supermarkets, will also repeat the closure, but have not said they will always do so.
An important decision considering what it represents commercially for these. Although already in previous years workers and labor activists criticized it.
According to a projection by the analytics site BlackFriday.com, Americans will spend $ 207 billion on online Christmas shopping this year, starting with Black Friday, which is 10% more than in 2020. 52% indicated who will buy something this Friday.
The FNM calculated the average amount spent by consumers in 2020 at $ 311.75 and expects to exceed that value, which in turn was lower than the $ 361.90 in 2019.
Retailers have already seen a strong increase in sales since “back to school” and Halloween, fueling optimism since this Black Friday week, according to AFP.
But the economic situation is not optimal either. Gasoline prices are up more than 60% from a year earlier, and Thanksgiving will cost nearly 14% more, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Shortages are another concern. Target, Walmart and other large retail chains offered assurances that they would have enough inventory in the face of supply chain problems, but a lack of popular video game consoles and some high-demand electronics from Apple and other companies that are currently difficult to sell are anticipated. find.
It is also considered that online prices will see an increase. “You have the conventional idea that shopping online is always available and always cheaper. And that’s what’s changing with the pandemic, ”said Vivek Pandya, an analyst at Adobe.
Inflation is another problem that has been worrying. Neil Saunders, an analyst at consultancy GlobalData Retail, indicated that inflation “is eroding a lot the spending capacity of people”, but expects a kind of drag in 2022 compared to December. (I)
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
