“Black Friday” shopping for sales has never held personal meaning, especially when one understands the overproduction, overconsumption and hidden pricing behind those so-called “savings.” This year was no different except that driving a few errands today displayed a more comical side.
Before explaining, remember that there are 2 commonly accepted meanings of Black Friday. The first is that the day helps to put retailers to be “in the black” with profits instead of staying “in the red” with losses. Second, it officially kicks off the holiday buying season. Neither is true.
The first and much lesser-known reference dates back to a stock market crash caused by plummeting gold prices in 1869. The negative effects were felt by the US economy for several years afterward.
Another historic name began with the famous Army-Naval football game in Philadelphia in the 1950s and 60s. It was always held on Saturday after Thanksgiving and this rivalry always had fanatical fans who flooded the streets on Friday between the holiday and the game to shop. Unfortunately, the police dreaded this time and were forced to work overtime to control the havoc on those 2 days. The term was first coined by David Zyla in his book “How to Win at Shopping” referring to an ad in 1966.
Today I saw multiple advertisements on the streets for sales, but with several colors besides black being used. First, this is a Central American country that does not celebrate Thanksgiving and the concept of Black Friday is not widely known. And secondly, the sales were not for just one day, but for the weekend, the week or even permanent!
How I wish I could interview some of these decision makers and ask them how, besides their logo colors, they chose to associate black with other colors. And my favorite display below misspells weekend, then refers to one week and encourages rainbow colors for your home.
