Around 86% of Black Friday deals were cheaper or the same price in the six months prior, new research from Which? has found.
originally An American phenomenon that has now spread worldwide, Black Friday is supposedly the day when retailers offer huge discounts to clear overhanging stock
However, a study by Which? of 214 UK deals from seven retailing giants found that 98% of discounts in 2021 were not the cheapest price the product had been sold for that year.
And none of the products researched was at their cheapest during 2021’s Black Friday.
Amazon, AO, Argos, Currys, John Lewis, Richer Sounds and Very, were the companies analysed and of these Amazon and Very were the biggest offenders with 70% of their products available for less at other times.
An Amazon spokesperson stated, “Our Black Friday sale offers thousands of deals from every category across the site at a time of year when we know saving money is important to our customers,” while audio retailer Richer Sounds argued excess stock was to blame.
Springboard, a retail analyst, meanwhile has predicted a 13.2% increase in footfall this Black Friday compared to last year, though Lloyds Bank has also warned online scams rise by a third during the weekend of Black Friday and what is now dubbed ‘cyber Monday’.