Black Friday steps on the brake in our country. The first sales balances after this weekend of massive discounts confirm what the commerce sector predicted: that sales grow but less than other years. In the case of fashion, a fall in sales is expected in November of about 3%, while last year they had grown 3.5%, according to provisional data from Acotex, employer of the sector.

According to Eduardo Zamácola, president of Acotex, "the trade no longer embraces Black Friday so furiously" and has made discounts "less aggressive and on certain items, not over the entire collection. Trade is depleted of such continuous promotion, ”he says.

If previous years were seen discounts of up to 60% or 70%, this year they have been 20% or 30% and in part of the collection.

The consumer "has not wanted to mortgage Christmas purchases" and has waited for December to make them, when in previous years they had advanced to November. Zamácola points out that if last year November was a very good month in sales and December was regular, this year will be the other way around.

Tired of promotion

It has also influenced that lesser consumer rage that in much of Spain has rained the weekend and "this, together with the saturation of discounts that the consumer has found throughout this month, has distorted the effect called Black Friday", They point to this newspaper from the Spanish Confederation of Commerce (CEC), which groups independent trade.

They point out that the phenomenon begins to weaken in some cities and there are shops that speak of up to 35% or 40% less sales.

Amazon, the ecommerce giant that popularized Black Friday, has not yet communicated its balance, although they already predicted that they were going to beat a new record. Just in case, to reinforce the effect called, they have opened a short-lived store in Madrid.

The sources consulted also highlight that if other years the purchases extended throughout the weekend, this year Friday has been the strong day and many shops have only made discounts that day. "More and more stores, already aware that they are the only days that work and also animated by our recommendation to narrow the campaign, has made only the day 29", they point out from the CEC.

Uncertainty

The political situation "has not helped to encourage consumption," they say, and this time "it seems that people are delaying Christmas shopping, when in recent years they were getting ahead of Black Friday." "Purchases have shifted, there has not been a stimulus to consumption in any case," they point out from the CEC, which has always been against this phenomenon when considering that it damages small businesses.

Bank of America, which has analyzed the discounts of several textile giants (Inditex, H&M, Zalando, Asos, Adidas, Puma ...), coincides with Acotex and the CEC in which this year some chains (specifically cites Inditex) have been more austere in their discounts than the previous year. Zara's chain, in particular, "has been less promotional, reflecting less aggressive behavior in its discount strategy in 2019".

For Criteo, an advertising platform that serves more than 20,000 advertisers, the Black Friday revenue index in Spain has grown by 18%. It is the lowest growth rate in southern Europe, up 15% in France, 39% in Italy and 59% in Portugal.

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