Black Friday… black for some, gold for others!

When the Black Friday sales were announced in the UK last November, there were a lot of questions about what it was? Why was it here? Wasn't it an American thing?

Yet that didn't stop millions of us across the UK rushing out to grab their bargains in the pre-Christmas sales or hunting down bargains online. The news showed stories of fights in superstores, brawls in fashion stores as everyone clambered through the crowds to pick up their Christmas presents…

But what did this mean for retailers across the UK and is this a good trend for us to pick up on?

While sales increased dramatically over this weekend, margins were considerably lower. John Lewis's MD, Andy Street, has publically warned retailers about putting pressure on staff and deliveries as well as actually sabotaging their own future sales. Many retailers experienced lower sales in December as a result of the increased November sales, and these Black Friday sales were often at a big discount, meaning overall, profits were lower.

The larger retailers that instigated the Black Friday phenomenon also gave little thought to how their sales may impact the rest of the business world – several smaller retailers could not compete with the prices being offered and have been struggling since as a result.

Therefore, Black Friday is not particularly conducive to the economy, especially when we should be helping small businesses get back on their feet after the recession.