Black Friday in 2014, widely regarded as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, declined significantly compared to last year. In 2013, 141 million Americans shopped on Black Friday, with total sales reached almost $60 billion. According to the National Retail Federation’s survey, Black Friday sales this year was down 11 percent.
According to several analysts, including the National Retail Federation, an improved economy, early promotions, and online shopping contributed to the decline. The National Retail Federation CEO, Matthew Shay stated, “A strengthening economy that changes consumers’ reliance on deep discounts, a highly competitive environment, early promotions, and the ability to shop 24/7 online all contributed to the shift witnessed this weekend.”
What about the boycotts that were widely shared on social media? Didn’t that have an effect?
This is where data becomes instrumental. Indeed, last year’s Nielsen report shows a downward trend in Black Friday, with increased significance of Cyber Monday. Despite this, we cannot discount the effect the Ferguson decision and subsequent boycotts had on purchases. Anecdotally, my social media feeds were inundated with “not one dime” hashtags, and as polarizing the grand jury decision was, I noticed a high degree of passion behind spreading the word about the boycott.
Imagine an America if African-Americans harnessed their collective buying power to empower our communities and stimulate job growth in areas that need it the most.
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