Why I Hate Black Friday

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Okay, so hate might be too strong a word, but I really don't like the practice of Black Friday.


I'm not a monster, I like a good shopping deal, but I have issues with Black Friday in particular. For starters, it isn't just a single day anymore. Retailers (Walmart being by far the worst offender I've seen so far) have been advertising Black Friday sales since before Halloween. HALLOWEEN! Which is 2 months before Christmas!

Black Friday is the Worst


Are we even going to bother celebrating Thanksgiving? 

Probably should just skip it, since that holiday doesn't net nearly enough profit for retailers.

On that note, it's the commercialization of holidays that really grinds my gears. The moment Halloween sales begin to dwindle, they jump right to coaxing people into the store with all things Christmas season... it's just disgusting. None of the holidays, Halloween included, are meant to be about SHOPPING.

Gift giving is meant to have meaning. Sure picking out something you got on sale can feel like an adrenaline high (it probably is), but how many gifts are bought just because they are supposedly a good deal? Does the recipient even want that for Christmas?

Back to Thanksgiving. It's a holiday that is purpose bent on spending time with family- the most important aspect of all holidays in my opinion. A time to gather together, give thanks for what blessings we have already and reflect on the year.

And of course, watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Which now comes complete with the SAME Macy's commercial every single commercial break. And it is guaranteed to be an annoying one- silly music, bizarre and nonsensical, hard to follow, but brightly colored- SHOP OUR STORE!!!! With a nice heavy emphasis on Christmas before you've even finished cooking the Thanksgiving turkey.

Okay, I will admit, it makes complete sense that Macy's advertises like crazy during their parade. Do you know how often I shop at Macy's though? NEVER. Like, I've seriously never been to a Macy's store in my life- the nearest one is over 200 miles from my house. I've made a purchase or two from them over the years online, but not because of a commercial.

Now, all the horrible corruption of holidays into capitalist propaganda aside, the idea of waiting in lines for Black Friday sales also irritates me.


Do you know what happens during the last week of November here in the Copper Country? Yep, it snows. Tomorrow is predicted to drop anywhere from 9 to 18 inches in 48 hours. Guess who won't be standing in line outside of a store at 4am to get the best door buster deals? Yep, me. I'm way too sane a person to do that with my time. I have never stood in line at a store at 4am to get a discount and frankly I never will. There is NOTHING I need to buy that is worth that kind of effort. I'll even pay more for food if I can buy it at a more reasonable hour.

The worst part?

Those Black Friday sales are not as stellar as they claim to be. 


A few years back I worked at Shopko (RIP) during the holiday season. We spent the night shift before Black Friday meticulously changing out all the price labels across the store for the upcoming "festivities". We overstaffed and got ready for the crowds.

The customers cleared us out pretty good that day. The following week, our regular two trucks and a spare restocked every single item we had advertised on Black Friday. By the following Friday, everything that had a "deal" on Black Friday was offered again at the exact same "deal" price. And the one thing that wasn't included on the first Friday in December- the 4am shopping and crowds.

That's right. Same deals, same products, less effort and stress by both the employee working and the customer.

Now I'm not saying all retailers do this- and frankly Shopko went bankrupt so I'm not sure they are leading any marketing trends- but my point is that the effort involved is not necessarily worth the reward.

If you absolutely MUST get your Black Friday shopping fix- I recommend Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, or my new favorite- Giving Tuesday.


I just learned about Giving Tuesday this year. Donating to a charity that helps the community is a much better practice than giving hundreds of dollars to Walmart. If you want somewhere to donate here in the Copper Country I recommend the Portage Health Foundation. They've been instrumental in helping recovery projects from the catastrophic Father's Day Floods we had in 2018, and repair work is still on-going from that. They donate to lots of local non-profits around here, including places like the Swedetown Trails and the Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly as well as many others.

In the meantime, I plan to spend my Friday this week relaxing at home with Hubby while the kids have a sleepover at their Auntie's house. Maybe we'll kick back with a steak dinner and movie night on the couch, or just go to bed early (YAY SLEEP!)

You definitely won't catch me lined up outside a store anywhere. I won't be decorating for Christmas until December either- I have to enjoy my turkey and stuffing holiday first.

Until next time,
Emma Leigh

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