Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday. What does it mean for you?

Exciting news! Black Friday 2020 is almost here! We're inching closer to November 27th when the big sale event officially kicks off!

But what is Black Friday? Where did it come from? and what does it actually mean for you?  

We’re here to answer all your questions around the traditionally American sale period known as Black Friday & Cyber Monday that has since gone global! 

When is Black Friday? 

In the US, Black Friday begins the day after Thanksgiving. Why? Because it's the unofficial beginning of the Christmas season!

Thanksgiving is a holiday that is celebrated on the last Thursday of November every year! This tradition began in the 19th century when President Abraham Lincoln officially acknowledged the day as a holiday!  But Black Friday didn't earn its name until much later... 

Black Friday is the informal name for the Friday following Thanksgiving. Since 1952, it has been hailed as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, and in recent years has gone global!  

What is Black Friday? 

Maybe you’re familiar with the origin story of Black Friday, maybe you’re not. The shopping extravaganza event we now know as Black Friday has an interesting history. 

So, where did the name Black Friday actually come from? 

For years, shoppers have been flooding local retailers the day after Thanksgiving, and that surge in spending was enough to put retailers “in the black”. Since then the Friday after Thanksgiving has been officially dubbed “Black Friday”. A bargain hunter's dream! 

However, the Black Friday name didn’t always have a nice tidy ring to it. 

The first mentions of Black Friday as we know it are said to have occurred around the 1950s or ’60s in Philadelphia, coined by traffic police who dreaded the day. 

To the Philadelphia police department, Black Friday was not a term of endearment. Yes, it officially opened the Christmas shopping season, but it also meant massive traffic jams  and over-crowded sidewalks as downtown stores were being mobbed from open to close.  

What does it mean for me? 

To sum it up quickly, Black Friday is a HUGE sale event across multiple retailers in multiple industries that offer incredible deals on their range of products and services.  

With just a few days leading up to the big sale event, it’s a great opportunity to get your Christmas shopping done without breaking the bank. And in the current COVID climate, there’s a very good chance there’ll be more online deals than ever before! 

Remember to keep an eye out for Sunshine Toyota’s sales and service BLACK FRIDAY OFFERS that launch TOMORROW!

Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday 

So now that we know what Black Friday is, what is Cyber Monday? And what makes it different from Black Friday? 

It’s hard to believe but Cyber Monday (in comparison to Black Friday) is just a baby, having only started in 2005. Cyber Monday was introduced as a digital sales event to complement Black Friday's traditionally in-store sales. 

The official Cyber Monday name was a nod to the internet as it was often referred to as ‘cyberspace’.  

So why is it Cyber Monday and not Cyber Saturday? Well... it turns out people like to shop when they’re at the office, using fast computers and high-speed connections and in the early days of online shopping, Monday proved a lucrative day for online stores -- so they embraced it.