Respite for retail
ZEENAT MOORAD: Black Friday mania hits SA
SA’s adoption of this retail practice is mystifying. But one should never underestimate the importance of promotion in a tough market
Retailers (who will not be named) have been foisting newsletters and flyers on all and sundry this week in the hope of coaxing SA’s cash-strapped to take part in Black Friday. If you don’t know anything about it, let me offer a quick rundown. The origin of the savings extravaganza is vague: police in 1950s Philadelphia are said to have used the term Black Friday to describe the heavy car and pedestrian traffic after the Thanksgiving holiday, when consumers took to the shops, marking the beginning of the annual Christmas shopping season. Some say it represents the point in the year when retailers start turning a profit — going from being "in the red" to "in the black". Whatever its provenance, the day after Thanksgiving has become the most frenzied shopping day of the year in the US — I’m talking mile-long queues, fist fights and tears.This year, SA’s regional shopping centres are offering flat rates on parking (and even free parking) on Black Friday. It’s not common practice to cele...
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