Michelle ThompsonWhich one? about 2% of the products were not available for the same price or less within six months after last year’s offers were examined.
According to an examination of last year’s event conducted by a top consumer group, only one out of every fifty Black Friday deals are at their lowest price on the day of the sales carnival.
Just 2% of the offers in a Which? survey that examined a variety of offers on November 25, 2022, were not found to be lower or at the same price six months later.
In recent years, Black Friday, which happens on the day following Thanksgiving in the US, has been exported to the UK as a day of discounts. However, customers have been cautioned to be cautious of offers and conduct some research before making any significant purchases.
Which? examined 208 offers from eight significant home and electronics stores in the previous year, including Currys, Argos, and Amazon. In the six months leading up to and following the major sales day of the previous year, they examined their prices daily.
Only five of the 208 products were at their lowest price on Black Friday, and the remaining 98% had either decreased in price or remained at the same price over the previous 12 months.
Customers shouldn’t feel “pressured to splash out on Black Friday as it’s rarely the cheapest time to shop,” according to Which? Retail retail editor Ele Clark. Although there are “bargains to be had,” she continued, customers should conduct their own research.
Which? discovered that 86% of products were the same price or less expensive at other times of the year even after looking at an extended sales period that ran from November 18 to December 2, in order to coincide with Cyber Monday, which comes right after Thanksgiving weekend.
Argos and Currys both had Apple AirPods (second generation) on sale for £119 instead of £139, which is one of the worst cases Which? could find. Every day from May 25 to September 9, however, these products were less expensive than their Black Friday price, ranging from £99 to £109.
Seventy-five percent (75%) of the things that Argos had on sale on Black Friday were actually less expensive at other times of the year than they were on Black Friday. Out of all the retailers that the consumer organization examined, this one had the greatest proportion.
Argos informed the Guardian that all of the products it analyzed were part of other promotional offers; only one was a Black Friday special. Which? discovered, however, that a large number of the Argos items in the analysis had “Black Friday” in the internet URL and were included in the retailer’s “Black Friday deals and hot products” section of the website.
The Garmin Lily Sports Edition smartwatch was reduced from £199 to £149 at Amazon, but Which? discovered that there had been lower prices for it 58 days before to Black Friday, including £114.99 during the Amazon Prime Day sale, when the store frequently has substantial markdowns.
When it came to products that were less expensive at other times of the year than their Black Friday price, Amazon had the second-highest percentage (69%) of these.
Amazon stated that it wants to provide excellent value all year long by matching prices and holding seasonal sales.
Currys stated: “While prices are subject to change at any time of the year, Black Friday remains a fantastic opportunity to score a deal, and we always urge our customers to take advantage of our price match guarantee during this period.”
Emily Martinez
