Black Friday eclipsing Boxing Day for sales
The Okanagan Saturday
Boxing Day and Boxing Week has lost some of its oomph. “Black Friday has become a bigger day and week than Boxing Day and week,” said Derek Shaw, manager of Andre’s Electronic Expert’s flagship store on Springfield Road in Kelowna.
But, of course, the retail one-upmanship is all relative.
It simply means there are fiveplus weeks of deals out there both pre-and-post Christmas.
And with Boxing Week wrapping up on Sunday, it means there’s only this weekend to get out there and score a deep discount.
But wait, the savings will continue through January with clearance sales.
So, decide for yourself. Blitz this weekend or hold on. Or, shop both for maximum savings and selection.
If you’re hitting the stores this weekend seeking blowouts, electronics rule, just as they did on Black Friday and Boxing Day.
Andre’s, which has 20 stores in B.C., including Penticton, Vernon and West Kelowna, continues its big-TV sale.
Save $1,000 and pick up a 70-inch ultra-high-definition Samsung for $1,998 or snag an iPhone 6s or iPhone 7 for nothing with a Telus contract renewal or activation.
There’s also deals on all other sizes and styles of TVs from 43-inch smart LED models to 65-inch curved screens.
The Source is extending its Boxing Week sale to 10 days to Jan. 4. There are savings on TVs, laptops, cameras, tablets and smartphones.
But the deals aren’t confined just to electronics.
The Brick has half-price and 60-per-cent-off sales on select furniture, appliances and mattresses.
La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries is also touting bargains of up to 50 per cent off.
London Drugs is one of those stores with Boxing Week blowouts in many categories because it has electronics, housewares, food and cosmetics departments. As such, you can save money on everything from a drone, binoculars, TV or watch to towels, vitamins, pots and pans and microwaves.
Black Friday is the American shopping tradition the Okanagan has adopted with enthusiasm.
In the U.S., the Friday after the country’s Thanksgiving is marked with gigantic sales to kick off the holiday season.
For years, the retail bonanza has been building north of the border to the point where many stores have now declared Black Friday bigger than Boxing Day and Boxing Week.
Black Friday is boosted in the Okanagan by the fact that most stores kick off Black Friday sales on Thursday and ride the wave for days as a way to generate excitement for Christmas shopping.
With such bargains to be had before Christmas, why wait until Boxing Day or week to score a discount?
Well, retailers will tell you there’s always special and leftover inventory to get rid of and the most popular products to promote.
This means deals abound from the third week of November through Jan. 1, just in time for January clearance sales.