The US Retail sector enthusiastically braces itself for a horde of bargain hunters

Today, Black Friday, so-called as it is the day when a vast swathe of the retail sector head out of the red and into the black, may make an economic turning point in the run up to Christmas. With half of the entire US population, some 152 million people, expected to hit the shops over the course of this weekend, up 10% on last year- the spike in trade could mean good news across the economy.

Black Friday usually sees shopping chains throw open their doors in the early hours. But this year that rush has crept into Thanksgiving Day itself. The effect isn’t limited to the US however, as Britain’s biggest and most well-known retailers have started “mega sales” early this year in an attempt to boost Christmas shopping amongst cash strapped shoppers. Amazon, in the run up to Black Friday is offering bargains for its ‘Black Friday Deals Week’ and Comet are offering a 5day Frenzy super sale. In effect this has turned black Friday into one of the biggest online shopping days of the year.

In the run up to Christmas consumers are expected to spend a whopping £7.75 billion on online shopping according to e-tailing trade association IMRG. An estimated £13 billion will be spent across all sectors online, however figures on the high street are expected to fall by 2.1 per cent in spite of so many sales starting early. It is clear that this year’s success stories will be told with a distinctly online lilt.

Kevin Flood, CEO of the leading social shopping website Shopow said, “Retailers that were desperately in need of a reversal of their fortunes have found that they now have an encouraging platform on which to build in the run up to Christmas. High street stores have had to pull out all the stops to make their shops attractive by reducing prices early and creating imaginative promotions to increase footfall and more activity at the tills. It is still far from plain sailing and there is still a lot of pressure on retailers and as long as business and consumer confidence remains low, the battle will continue to persuade shoppers to return in their droves.

“Online activity has emerged as a vital area that will only continue to grow in importance over Christmas. We are expecting a significant amount of Christmas activity online and those who have introduced innovative shopping tools that make shopping easier and more cost effective will take capitalise.”

For the past six years, a combination of increasingly early opening times and an array of discounts have helped make the day after Thanksgiving the biggest shopping day – and cement the term “black Friday.” It will be nonetheless difficult for chains that have struggled with sales declines lately, including the likes of Topshop, to see a benefit from thoroughly deep discounting. Many have opted instead to move into the social shopping environment in order to drive sales through peer to peer reviewing and sustainable discounting.

Social shopping has emerged as an exciting trend in online retailing as many of these high street stores look to engage consumers. It involves the use of social networking to share recommendations, share discounts, post reviews and ask for advice on products before purchase.

Mike Harty COO of Shopow (www.shopow.co.uk) said “Regular web shoppers are now empowered to talk about their purchases in an honest way. Social shopping enables shoppers to use their trusted networks to make informed decisions but also makes online shopping more interactive, enjoyable and indeed sustainable.”