Black Friday is here, but it’s totally different

According to foreign media reports, although there were many people queuing up in offline supermarkets in the United States on Black Friday , these people's goal was just to buy the latest toys and electronic products. Most consumers still choose to shop online .

At the same time, a series of problems have brought poor shopping experiences to shoppers, including shortages caused by tight supply , rising gasoline and food prices , and labor shortages that have made it difficult for stores to provide adequate services to consumers .

The largest mall in the U.S. , the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, said nearly 100,000 people had come through as of early Friday afternoon, more than double last year but still shy of 2019 numbers.

However, Black Friday retail sales surged 29.8% by the afternoon, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which tracks all types of payments, including cash and credit cards. That was above its forecast for 20% growth for the day.

Overall holiday sales are expected to grow this year. The National Retail Federation predicts sales for the entire November and December months will increase 8.5% to 10.5%, compared with 8% growth in those two months in 2020.

While Black Friday holds a large place in the American imagination as a day of frenzied shopping, its status has declined over the past decade as stores opened on Thanksgiving and shopping shifted to Amazon and other online retailers, and retailers’ early promotions on the shopping day further diluted the day’s importance.

Shopper Edmond Kunath said he found it "very frustrating " that " all over the country, there were only 30 or so people in line at a Best Buy in the Denver area when the doors opened at 5 a.m .. "

“ The crowds here this morning were surprisingly light ,” said Kunert , who was looking for deals on Apple AirPods headphones and gaming consoles .

However, Mastercard data shows that the power of online shopping remains huge, with sales expected to rise 7% this week after a sharp increase of 46% a year ago, as many shoppers stay at home. For the entire holiday season, online sales should be up 10% from a year ago, according to the Adobe Digital Economy Index, after a 33% increase last year.

Marshal Cohen of market research firm NPD Group said: "This epidemic will force the US retail industry to open up another track of online shopping .

Black Friday

USA