Party for some, but a thorn in the side for others: Black Friday is just around the corner. During this phenomenon that came from the United States the day after Thanksgiving, some stores offer high discounts. It is seen as the start of the festive season.
Stores welcome additional audiences, but have difficulty with procedures and delivery times. Municipalities want to organize crowds as coronavirus-resistant as possible. Environmental organizations are calling on people not to buy and to “consume” instead.
Milieu Centraal wondered how many Dutch people are now taking advantage of these promotions. It turns out that most people haven’t approved of the bargaining fest just yet: Only one in five planned to strike in the coming days, according to the poll. Almost half of the plan to buy nothing. Just like last year, Black Friday falls at a time when the number of coronavirus infections continues to rise.
Online offers
In general, Dutch entrepreneurs also remain cautious. The vast majority of them don’t participate in Black Friday, says Paul te Grotenhuis of the INretail trade association. “We see entrepreneurs who do nothing, but also entrepreneurs who spread their business over several days.” In the case of chains, the affiliate sees that there is a heavy emphasis on online offerings. “Also to prevent crowding in stores as much as possible. Several promotions have already been scaled back.”
“These weeks are very important for store owners,” says Dominic van Elsacker, manager of the Urban Department Store in Rotterdam. “We’re doing our best to get visitors posted. That’s why we’re doing deals for five days, to ease the pressure on Friday.”
