It may have started as an American tradition, but Black Friday has become a fixture here in the UK for a good few years now.
The shopping phenomenon sees retailers cut the RRPs off millions of products, meaning it’s the best time of year to check off your shopping list and make your precious pounds stretch that little bit further.
What’s on offer, exactly? How dramatic are the discounts? And perhaps most crucially of all; when does the Black Friday sale start? We’ve answered all these questions and more below - scroll on for your Black Friday 2023 game plan.
When is Black Friday this year?
It’s not a mood, a moment or a set date, but rather a globally agreed time of year. Black Friday always takes place on the last Friday of November.
This year, that means the discount gun will fire on November 24, which also happens to be exactly a month before Christmas Eve - and if that’s not a sign to get a headstart on your festive shopping, we don’t know what is.
It’s not just a one-day event by any means. Most brands and retailers run sales all the way through the weekend until November 27, the Monday after Black Friday given the moniker Cyber Monday as it’s traditionally the time to score deals on all things tech.
How did Black Friday begin?
Settle down children for the origin story of the world’s biggest shopping holidays. The tradition can be traced back to the 60s when American stores put on huge sales to entice families after the US holiday of Thanksgiving.
Shoplore has it that the term ‘Black’ comes from the colour of the traffic-choked streets in Philadelphia, and it’s a catchy title that’s stuck around ever since.
In the intervening years, the phenomenon caught on across the Atlantic - no surprise, after all, who doesn’t adore a bargain? The sales begin on Friday and finish on Cyber Monday, now both established fixtures on the UK’s shopping calendar.
There’s also Green Friday, an eco-minded alternative that encourages folks to shop more sustainably.
Will there be early deals ahead of the main sale?
Just as the official sale extrapolates over the weekend and onto Cyber Monday, pre-sales are now commonplace as more and more retailers jump the official firing gun with discounts, sales and promotions taking place well ahead of the event, as early as mid-October in some cases.
While you’re better off waiting until Black Friday to buy, in an emergency - like a fridge or washing machine breakdown - replacing an appliance is more of a necessity than an upgrade, which makes early sales all the more welcome.
The smart play is to shop Black Friday entirely online and have everything delivered to your door. Why tussle with the crowds on the high street and queue for hours on end when the alternative is a dignified few clicks from the comfort of your own home?
Consider ES Best your ground control for all things Black Friday, and indeed, shopping. As soon as the offers come in, we’ll tell you about them.
In the meantime check out the ES Best Deals section for sales you can shop right now.
Which brands hold Black Friday sales?
Almost every brand is likely to make some sort of offering as they angle for a slice of the Black Friday sales pie. Think major department stores like Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, Harrods, John Lewis and more as well as all the luxury and high street brands that you can shake your plastic at.
The likes of ASOS, Not On The High Street, Etsy and Amazon get in on the act too, with the latter casting a spotlight on small businesses to shop from too.
What were the best deals from last year’s Black Friday event, and can we expect these again?
As your go-to insider source for savvy shopping, the best place to read about the epic deals on offer will be right here on ES Best.
We will have dedicated roundups for popular stockists as well as categories (Fashion, Beauty, Home & Garden, Tech, Kids & Maternity, and Travel to name but a few). And as regular readers will know, we will also run a live blog to clue you in on the hottest deals and flash sales as they happen.
Last year saw a monsoon of incredible deals with prices tumbling on everything from Glossier skincare to gas BBQs, high-spec OLED TVs and fine diamond jewellery.
With the cost-of-living crisis affecting millions across the country, we’re confident that retailers will respond with incredible offers to help your money go further this year, whether you’re Christmas shopping or stockpiling items to use into the new year. And, as well as dramatically reduced RRPs, there’s likely to be freebies like gift cards, limited edition collections and complimentary accessories thrown into the fray too.
The short of it? If you’re hoping for Christmas bargains, want to secure future birthday gifts or useful home essentials or to save money on practically anything else, Black Friday is the one shopping event you simply can’t afford to miss.
