This is an update of a popular blog post from 2017.

The busiest shopping day of the year is traditionally said to be the day after Thanksgiving, dubbed Black Friday in honor of stores “getting in the black” and making a profit starting that day. Those of us who love the origin of words and phrases will be interested to know that Black Friday actually started out as a reference to the day the U.S. gold market crashed in 1869. Today it has a more positive connotation, at least to bargain shoppers.

Bargain shopping is in fact what Black Friday is all about, characterized by the big box store shopping frenzy that sometimes even starts the evening of Thanksgiving. It’s tempting for independent retailers to sit out the fray and wait until the next day for the more civilized and feel-good Small Business Saturday — but it’s not a bad idea consider making the most of every opportunity to attract customers.

They key to Black Friday success is coming up with some bargains that are time-limited to that day, giving customers a sense of urgency.  This is a great opportunity to bring in sale merchandise that you can sell on sale at the same markup that you normally get on full priced merchandise. I’m sure that with the exception of a few “loss leaders” to attract attention, most of the big stores’ bargains are netting them good margins.

We’ve received emails from several of our suppliers offering sale merchandise for Black Friday, and we are counting on our sales reps to bring other closeouts and discounts to our attention.  Often the bargain prices on this merchandise can be continued until the stock is gone, which makes it a good investment even if we don’t get much traffic on Black Friday itself. Two caveats, though: make sure that the goods are a logical fit with your other inventory, and that the minimum quantity reflects an amount you feel confident you can sell.

Should you offer a loss leader?  By definition, this is a product sold at below wholesale cost, or at least at a deep discount, in order to attract attention.  This may be an effective advertising ploy if it fits with your store image, however there is the danger of cheapening your brand (or going against MAP pricing policies) if you decide to do this. It might be better to emphasize your pleasurable shopping experience, and to offer a free gift, refreshments or special discount to encourage shoppers to come in on Black Friday to see what you have in store.  

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder