Black Friday, this whirlwind of offers and discounts that ravages our wallets and our sanity every year, is much more than just a date on the calendar. Is it a mirror that reflects our society, with its lights and shadows, its desires and its contradictions?
Born in the 1960s in Philadelphia, “Black Friday” was initially an expression used by police officers to describe the vehicular and pedestrian chaos that broke out after Thanksgiving. Ironically, this term, associated with collapse and disorder, became synonymous with consumer frenzy, with the longed-for transition from red to black numbers in accounting books.
In its beginnings, Black Friday was limited to a single day. Then someone asked, why not a weekend? And since we’re at it, a week better? Or a month better? Insatiable people have already created “pre-Black Friday” and “post-Black Friday”
To give an idea of the magnitude of this phenomenon, online sales during Black Friday 2023 (USA) exceeded $9 billion, while globally, the figure is estimated to have risen to more than $40 billion.
As we fill our virtual shopping carts, we sacrifice the sustainability of the planet. Mass production, transportation and packaging generate a huge ecological footprint.
The “use and throw away” model is imposed, distancing us from responsible and conscious consumption.
In addition, the constant bombardment of offers and promotions pushes us to impulsive, often unnecessary purchases.
Are we becoming puppets of a system that encourages us to consume without thinking, to accumulate without enjoying?
Many companies, seduced by profits, are tempted to ignore the environmental impact of their actions. Many consumers, blinded by offers, forget their responsibility as citizens of the planet.
More and more brands are betting on a “sustainable Black Friday” (oxymoron?).
Technology, which has contributed to the expansion of Black Friday, can also be key to its transformation. AI allows for personalized offers, adapting them to the real needs of consumers, avoiding unnecessary purchases.
Black Friday is a reminder that every purchase is a decision, a vote for the kind of world we want to build.
Is it time to stop being mere consumers and become responsible citizens, aware of the impact of our actions?
Do companies have the responsibility to offer sustainable alternatives, to innovate so that consumption is not synonymous with destruction?
Should consumers learn to buy consciously, to value quality over quantity, to prioritize the lasting over the ephemeral?
Illustration credits: Paolo Lombardi
