Black Friday Explained..plus a sneak peek…

Shoppers everywhere are waiting in anticipation for the biggest and craziest sales day of the year in the retail shopping calendar, and that day is; Black Friday! The Black Friday shopping bonanza marks the start of the festive spending season, and Brits were spoilt for choice last year with 91 per cent of UK stores taking part in the once-a-year sales event.

The shopping trend traditionally takes place the day after the US celebration of Thanksgiving and this year it falls on November 23. However, many stores will be offering deals and discounts in the weeks leading up to the big day. (Including Tropicana Wholesale!)

But have you ever wondered where the term ‘Black Friday’ originates from? Here is a rundown on the History of Black Friday…(scroll down for details of our Black Friday campaign!)

Early Origins

The term 'Black Friday' was actually first associated with financial crisis, not sales shopping.

Two Wall Street financiers Jim Fisk and Jay Gould, together bought a significant amount of US gold in the hope of the overall price soaring and in turn being able to sell it for huge profits.

On Friday, September 24 1869, in what became referred to as 'Black Friday', the US gold market crashed and both Fisk's and Gould's actions left Wall Street barons bankrupt.

It was not until later years that the post-Thanksgiving period became associated with the name.

Black Friday Tales

When shops in the US recorded their accounting details by hand, they noted profits in black and losses in red. It is thought that many shops were "in the red" throughout most of their year of operation but they later "went into the black" the day after Thanksgiving, when shoppers bought a huge amount of discounted merchandise. In more recent years, an inaccurate rumour circulated, suggesting that Southern plantation owners could buy slaves at a discounted price following Thanksgiving in the 1800s.

Who Coined the Name Black Friday?

Police officers in Philadelphia were first to link Black Friday to the post-Thanksgiving period in the 1950s. Large crowds of tourists and shoppers came to the city the day after Thanksgiving for the Army-Navy football game, creating chaos, traffic jams and shoplifting opportunities.

Police officers in the city weren't able to take the day off work and instead had to work long shifts to control the carnage, thus using the term Black Friday to refer to it.

Black Friday later became known in print, after an advertisement was published in The American Philatelist magazine in 1966. By the late 1980s, the term was commonly known across the nation and retailers soon linked it to their post-Thanksgiving sales.

Black Friday & Tropicana Wholesale

Now for the exciting bit, Tropicana Wholesale will be running deals slightly earlier than the official date of Friday 23rd November – keep your eyes on your inbox, mobile & our website for details of when the deals will start. What we can tell you however, is that we will have exclusive offers on top UK and International brands such as Optimum Nutrition, Grenade, Reflex Nutrition and Mars.

Be sure to visit TropicanaWholesale.com in the coming week or so or call your Sales Team on 0121 313 6738.