Black Friday can mean big business for retailers. In the UK last year, retail revenue from Black Friday was estimated to have topped £12.3billion, up 8.3% year-on-year, according to Mintel, as price conscious shoppers snapped up savvy deals.

And this trend is set to continue in 2023, with 51% of UK consumers planning to spend during Black Friday this year and a third (33%) aiming to spend up to a quarter of their total Christmas shopping budget on Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, according to data from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA)’s.

With the cost-of-living criss showing no signs of abating, shoppers are searching for discounts now more than ever to balance higher costs with less money in their back pockets.

FURTHER READING: Cost of living crisis hits retail sales>

But as sales rocket, so do return rates. And for some retailers the event is both a loss-leader and damages brand equity, so they are opting out of it altogether. 

WHAT IS BLACK FRIDAY?

Black Friday is an annual shopping event that falls the day after the US Thanksgiving holiday, traditionally marking the start of the crucial holiday shopping season. It started as a day of special shopping deals and heavy discounting, but now many retailers have moved these deals to a week or even month long which is bringing forward Christmas spend.

Online giant Amazon is to thank for the Black Friday tradition moving to the UK, offering global-wide deals of up to 80% off selected items. This prompted UK retailers to follow suit to stay competitive, with many brands selling their goods on Amazon as well as standalone websites.  

And Asda – which was owned by US retailer Walmart at the time – brought the tradition to bricks and mortar stores in the UK about a decade ago, causing a stampede as customers rushed to buy heavily-discounted big-ticket items.  

WHEN IS BLACK FRIDAY 2023?

Black Friday falls on Friday 24 November 2023, with Cyber Monday landing on Monday 27 November 2023.

REVENUE VERSUS RETURNS

But, despite the potential for sales, many Fashion retailers are now cautious about their involvement with the event, as the hit to brand equity and margins is too much.

Some brands with a strong stance on sustainability, such as British premium womenswear label Me+Em, also don’t get involved, encouraging customers to shop for value rather than trying to compete on price and a race to the bottom.

BLACK FRIDAY FASHION

Meanwhile, new data reveals that the cost of returns for Black Friday purchases this year is set to reach record highs, with Gen Z fashion shoppers saying they will return over 1 in 4 of all fashion purchases made during Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) 2023, closely followed by Millennials, who are set to send back over a fifth of clothing bought during the discounting event. 

And one in every six fashion purchases made on Black Friday 2023 overall will be returned, according to research by AI sizing fashion platform True Fit which surveyed over 1,000 UK consumers.

But while Gen Z will be the highest returning cohort, they are also the biggest spenders on Black Friday fashion, with the average 18 – 25-year-old planning to splash out £389 during the discounting event on clothing, shoes and accessories, according to the data. 

This compares to the average UK shopper who plans to spend £239 on fashion during the Black Friday weekend, rising to £334 for Millennials.  

“Black Friday through Cyber Monday presents an annual opportunity for retailers to build both revenue and acquire new customers,” says Jessica Arredondo Murphy, Co-Founder & COO at True Fit.

“However, with a sixth of their sales expected to be returned along with all the associated costs of reverse logistics and remerchandising that come with returned goods, a successful holiday season is about balancing sales with margin protection,” she adds.

BLACK FRIDAY FASHION DEALS UK

Many retailers who take part in the event keep their Black Friday deals close to their chest until they go live, not wanting to dissuade consumers from full price purchasing in the run-up.

But for 2023, fashion retailers such as Ghost are already offering 50% off selected items, with Boden offering tiered discounting when you buy 3 or more items and sportswear giants Adidas and Nike offering up to 50% off in the sale. 

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