Black Friday discounts fail to offer cheapest prices, Which? research finds
Shoppers holding out for a Black Friday bargain on 28 November may not get the best prices, according to Which? research that found none of the offers on the day were at their lowest level over a 12-month stretch.The consumer group compared prices for 175 home, tech and health appliances across eight retailers, ranging from Amazon to John Lewis.Prices were tracked over a full year, from May 2024 to May 2025, including the 2024 Black Friday period.It found that on the day of Black Friday 2024 none of the items it looked at were at the cheapest price they had been over the surrounding year.Britons are expected to spend £9.
52bn over this year’s four-day Black Friday weekend – 4.2% more than last year – according to separate research from Vouchercodes, with 54% of spending forecast to be rung up online.The arrival of payday for many at the end of the week means that Cyber Monday – on 1 December – is predicted to record the highest sales figures of £3.38bn.While Christmas is about gifts, UK shoppers primarily consider the US-inspired annual discount event as a chance to treat themselves, with more than £2bn of spending over the weekend forecast to go on new clothing and footwear compared with £670,000 on toys.
Electrical products are another sought-after category, as the chance for big discounts on coveted brands prompts a predicted spending spree of almost £1.7bn – 5.6% more than last year and equating to an average £213 per person.The category expected to enjoy the biggest boost in spending is cosmetics, with the sales forecast to rise 7.4% year-on-year to £840m across the four-day weekend.
However, bargain hunters who have sat tight until this weekend may be disappointed as the research from Which? suggests there will not be a round of discounts reserved for Black Friday.And even over the four weeks around Black Friday, not all of the price cuts appeared to be better than at other times of year.Of the John Lewis products it looked at, 94% were the same price or cheaper at other times of the year.A Samsung Jet Bot Robot vacuum cleaner was £350 on Black Friday but had been £299 for 29 days in May and June 2024 and was £399 for 35 days in August to September, before jumping to £500 during the first week of October.A John Lewis spokesperson said: “Our customers can find brilliant deals with us all year round, but our Black Friday event brings together a unique breadth and volume of offers that can’t be found at any other time of year – and is especially popular as customers prepare for Christmas.
”Sign up to Business TodayGet set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morningafter newsletter promotionAt Very, 93% of deals were the same price or cheaper outside the Black Friday sales period.A spokesperson from The Very Group said: “Promotions are important to our customers and Black Friday is just one of the many key calendar moments when we showcase some of our best deals.”While the discounting frenzy may be good for shoppers, small businesses said it only added to pressure on them from higher costs and lacklustre consumer demand.The British Independent Retailers Association (Bira), which represents thousands of independent businesses, said some of its members were offering alternatives to discounting such as “Bright Friday” or “Fizz Friday” that focus on the benefits of shopping independently, while others were supporting charitable causes.It said there was a “growing rebellion against the American-imported sales event” this year, with almost 77% of small businesses rejecting participation, up from 69% last year.
Small Business Saturday, an event to be held on 6 December, is also aiming to highlight the alternatives to searching for bargains online,One retailer told Bira: “Discounting is a death spiral and every industry is already sacrificing too much margin to gain functionally useless turnover,”
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