The History of the Black Friday Bonanza
Black Friday is a super event that signifies to different people Thanksgiving, the beginning of Christmas, or even just a day of really good sales. But where did this event come from, and how has its meaning changed throughout history?
Black Friday was originally the title given to the day which crashed the American gold market in 1869. Two young Walstreet entrepreneurs bought up as much gold as they could in hopes that the price of gold would be driven sky high. But when the conspiracy was revealed, the stock market plummeted causing both men and many others to lose their jobs on Wallstreet.
The term was then reinvented in Philadelphia in the 1950s. The American law inforcement used “Black Friday” as a way of describing the chaos that took place the day after thanksgiving when thousands of people would fly in to Philadelphia to watch the Army v Navy football game that took place every year. The cops could not take the day off, and had to work longer hours to deal with the huge crowds and fans.
But in the late 1980s “Black Friday” became what we know it as today. Retailers used the term to reflect positively on the good deals and sales that were open to the public on the day. The term signified the time when stores came into profit from all of the sales done on Black Friday and the story stuck.
Black Friday is now a four day event. Black Friday, Small business Saturday/Sunday and Cyber Monday are all the events that occur on this occasion for the public to take advantage of.
I asked Justin Longhurst about his opinions on Black Friday and he said this; “ In my personal opinion I think that there is no need for Black Friday. There are so many times around the year where you can get great deals that there is no need for the event. I actually think it is a bit of a con, a way for shops to create false deals to draw in gullible shoppers.”
Whether you agree with Justin and his extreme views or you think Black Friday is a money saving ticket to heaven, you cannot deny the event is a worldwide success every year, with an estimated 135.8 million Americans shopping on the day this year.
