I remember the last time I shopped Black Friday. I was visiting my family in Wisconsin. I wanted to nab a Santa Bear from Dayton’s. This was before Dayton’s became Marshall Fields then Macy’s and now Macy’s doesn’t even exist at the mall we shopped. It was that long ago!
Are you a Black Friday shopper? Did you get up at the crack of dawn for the best deals? Or perhaps you started Thanksgiving Day after turkey and pumpkin pie thinking “running around” from store to store might wear off some of the extra helpings!
Saturday was Small Business Saturday. Did you do some more shopping to support your local community? Are you shopping today? After all it is Cyber Monday! Even if you have gone back to work, are you taking a few minutes to see what Amazon might be offering for Cyber Monday?
When did all this shopping hoopla begin? It actually began sooner than you might have thought. Black Friday has its beginnings way back in the 19th century when President Abraham Lincoln designated Thanksgiving to be the last Thursday in November. The day after was not yet “Black Friday.”
The first Thanksgiving Day parade began in 1905 when Canadian Department store Eaton’s brought Santa on a wagon through the streets of downtown Toronto. In 1913 eight reindeer pulled Santa’s “sleigh.” By 1916 nursery rhyme characters joined Santa in the parade.
It wasn’t until 1924 that Macy’s Department store launched its famous Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. The parade helped to boost shopping the following day. Retailers had a gentlemen’s agreement to wait until then to begin advertising sales for the holidays.
In 1939 retailers petitioned President Franklin D Roosevelt to move Thanksgiving holiday up one week to the 4th Thursday of the month to lengthen the holiday shopping season. It wasn’t until 1941 that congress passed a law making the 4th Thursday of November Thanksgiving.
During the 1950’s people began calling in sick to give themselves a four day weekend. Since stores and businesses were already open those playing hooky could get a jump start on their shopping. Soon rather than businesses trying to figure out who was really sick and who wasn’t, the Friday after Thanksgiving became a paid holiday.
The term “Black Friday” was first coined in 1966 when a story appeared in an ad The American Philatelist. The term was used by the Philadelphia Police Department to describe the traffic jams and crowding in the downtown stores. The name stuck and the rest is history!
Next came Cyber Monday. The term was coined by Ellen Davis and Scott Silverman of the National Retail Federation. Cyber Monday was created by retailers to encourage online shopping. It made its debut November 28, 2005. Cyber Monday quickly became one of the biggest online shopping days of the year.
Let’s not forget about Small Business Saturday! Being a small business owner myself it is my favorite. And when I can I shop and support small businesses. Small Business Saturday was created by credit card giant American Express on November 27, 2010. American Express launched a campaign in order to help small businesses gain additional exposure and to change the way consumers shop during the holiday season. Participation in Small Business Saturday continues to grow!
Do you shop Black Friday, Small Business Saturday or Cyber Monday? Do you shop all three or none at all?
Until next time,
cheryl