By now, most of us will have heard of Black Friday. The concept, which has swept across the pond to us in the last few years, is actually tied to the American Holiday of Thanksgiving. The day after Thanksgiving is considered the official beginning of the traditional holiday shopping season, which is why retailers adopted the practice of offering special reduced prices on this day.
Once reserved for brick and mortar malls, this trend crept online with the advent of the internet and soon, shops in countries other than America were hopping on the trend as well. Cut to today, when brands all across Ireland (and the internet) have begun to offer heavily slashed prices on this day, which, in actual fact has no real significance in our calendar.
Unfortunately, this relatively new practice has had an unintended side effect: With Irish consumers so busy rushing to snap up the biggest possible bargains in store and online, independent Irish retailers are now often overlooked in favour of larger or more international brands, who have the capacity to offer more competitive prices.
That’s why, this year, Irish retailers are aiming to turn Black Friday Green. The "Green Friday" campaign is aimed at encouraging Irish people to shop locally and support Irish brands and independent businesses when doing their Christmas shopping this year. Community support is the lifeblood of local businesses, which is why it is imperative that Irish consumers make an effort to shop locally, when at all possible.
This one small change can have a huge impact on your favourite local shops, as well as the economy of your local community. Many independent retailers are unable to offer discounts capable of rivalling those of bigger brand names, but that doesn’t mean they are any less deserving of your support.
Spearheaded by Bronwyn Connolly and Meadhbh O' Leary Fitzpatrick of Wild Design Collective Cork, this initiative is also wholeheartedly backed by the Design & Crafts Council of Ireland, Retail Excellence, Chambers Ireland, The Small Firms Association and Irish brands and retail businesses across the country, including ourselves.
For a move that will benefit independent retailers, your local economy, the environment and Ireland as a whole, we would ask that you please consider going Green this Black Friday and showing your love for local businesses.
Design Credit: Wild Design Collective