Gumtree research highlights the amount Britons spend on Black Friday purchases they don’t use or even remember buying

• 23% of festive shoppers feel under pressure to buy something on the discount day
• One in ten people buy something on Black Friday they already have at home
• Clothing, tablets and TVs among Brits’ top 10 Black Friday regrets

Research out today reveals Brits wasted a staggering £855 million on Black Friday purchases last year they haven’t used or even remember buying[1].  These unnecessary purchases come from the fact that more than one fifth (23%) of festive shoppers feel ‘pressured’ to buy something on the discount shopping day, only to find that they have a similar item at home (12%) – and with £10.1bn forecasted to be spent by UK shoppers on Black Friday this year, it seems likely a significant proportion of the amount spent by Britain will be on items we don’t actually need.

Black Friday Blues: Shopping regrets

The study by Gumtree found that out of the 46% of Brits who have shopped on Black Friday, 13% can’t even remember what they bought. Just 19% of shoppers remember ‘some’ of the items they bought on Black Friday last year – leading many people to regret their purchasing decisions. The Black Friday items Brits most regret buying include clothing, followed by tablets and TVs. Other items on the list include expensive coffee machines, faddy smoothie makers and fancy gym equipment.

Top 10 Biggest Black Friday Regrets:

1. Clothing
2. Tablets
3. TVs
4. Coffee machines
5. Mobiles
6. Gaming consoles
7. Sportwear
8. Handbags
9. Smoothie makers
10. Gym equipment

Most Pressured to Spend

The study found that women (24%) are more likely to feel pressured to buy something on Black Friday compared to men (22%), spending £59.06 each on average – despite this, men in fact spend more, with each man splashing out £63.80 on average. Those aged between 26 and 34-years-old spend the most, forking out £84.36 each, followed by 16 to 24-year-olds (£71.50) and 35 to 44-year-olds (£71.33).

Regionally, the most pressured to spend on Black Friday are Londoners (34%) and those living in Northern Ireland (45%), followed by the West Midlands (26%) and Wales (23%). While just 16% of Brits living in the East of England feel pressured to buy something on the bargain discount day. In terms of the biggest spenders, people living in the West Midlands spend the most (£78.89), followed by Londoners (£74.36) and the North West (£72.38). Meanwhile, the Welsh spend a modest £39.01.

Regional Spilt: Average Spend Per Person

1. West Midlands – £78.89
2. London – £74.36
3. North West – £72.38
4. South East – £65.46
5. Yorkshire and Humber – £64.50
6. Northern Ireland – £61.42
7. Wales – £59.52
8. Scotland – £54.82
9. North East – £53.95
10. East Midlands – £48.84
11. East of England – £41.02
12. South West – £39.01

Financial Expert, Jasmine Birtles, said: “We have to remember that the point of Black Friday is to make money for the shops, not to help us. It is possible to ‘win’ at Black Friday but only if you’re strict with yourself and only buy things that you were going to purchase anyway and you know what price it should be. Just wandering into shops, or browsing through websites, on the Black Friday weekend could lead you into buying things you don’t need or want. It will make you a Black Friday loser.

“I agree with Gumtree that the best policy is to have a ‘one in, one out’ approach to possessions. That way, not only is your home less cluttered, but you can make money on your stuff, bringing the net cost of new things down even more.”

Hannah Wilson, Head of Marketing at Gumtree, said: “Our research shows a whopping £855 million was wasted on Black Friday purchases last year that Brits either don’t use or even remember buying. That’s a huge sum of money, with almost a quarter of festive shoppers parting with their hard-earned cash because they felt pressured to buy the items on offer.

“This year, we hope to encourage people to think more carefully about their Black Friday purchases to ensure they don’t end up buying something they don’t use or regret. One way they can do this is by making room for a new Black Friday purchase by either selling or giving away an item they no longer use or need. More than one in ten people did this last year and we’re aiming for more Brits to do the same by joining our  ‘Clear Out, Cash In’ campaign – an initiative which helps Brits sell items they no longer need to make room for something new.”

END

About the research

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from Opinium. Total sample size was 2,005 UK adults aged 16+. Fieldwork was undertaken between the 1^st until 6^th November 2017.

For more information, please contact:

Fergus Campbell

M: +44 (0) 7825 682372

E: [email protected]

For more information on Gumtree visit www.gumtree.com and follow @Gumtree to join the conversation.

About Gumtree

Gumtree is the UK’s #1 classifieds website, used by 1 in 3 adults every month. With over 2 million ads on the site, it’s the perfect place to buy or sell second-hand goods and cars. You can also find ads for a wide range of jobs, properties to rent and buy, professional services, community events and more. 16.4 million people in the UK visited Gumtree.com between June 2016 – May 2017 (source: comScore UK), with 4.1m visiting Motors, 1.6m visiting Jobs, 2.1m visiting Property and 1m visiting Services. Current figures show the Gumtree smartphone app has been downloaded over 13 million times.

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[1] Based on average UK spend vs the purchases we regretted