Some say the name originated in Philadelphia in the 1960s, a snide reference to the waves of traffic and pedestrians who flooded stores after Thanksgiving Day. Others maintain it marks the first day many retailers move in to the black.
But whatever its origins, one thing is for certain: Black Friday—the day after Thanksgiving and traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the entire year—was, in 2014, kind of a bust. According to the National Retail Federation, sales fell by 11% from their 2013 levels.
What happened? As Harvard historian Nancy Koehn explained, the rise of online shopping has diffused the kick off for the holiday shopping season. By the time the Friday after Thanksgiving rolls around, many shoppers have already been on the prowl for weeks.
“Black Friday has now become Black November or Black December,” she said.
Shoppers, armed with apps that compare prices and track sales, are now pouncing early—or holding out—for better deals. “Consumers have figured this out really, really well, and are just waiting until they can get the price they want. If they don’t get it, they don’t buy,” Koehn said.
But Black Friday’s black cloud may have a silver lining. Diffusing the post-Thanksgiving consumer rush could encourage Americans to refocus on the reasons so many love the holiday in the first place, said Koehn: like eating, relaxing, and spending time with family instead of, say, being crushed in a line at five in the morning for a DVD player.
“We, as members of the human village, need and want space in between clicking and buzzing and driving and being and getting and spending and inbox and outbox,” she said.
“I think rethinking, or thinking just a little more broadly briefly, about Thanksgiving weekend and Black Friday, is probably a good thing for that reason.”
For more from historian Nancy Koehn, tune in to her full interview on Boston Public Radio with Jim Braude and Margery Eagan above.
