GREEN MONDAY

You have one more day to buy on sale

Consumers are familiar with Black Friday, Cyber Monday or Giving Tuesday. But what about Green Monday?

The shopping day falling on the second Monday of December is similar to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, as retailers once again try to lure shoppers with a fresh batch of holiday deals.

While it originally started with online marketplace eBay, Green Monday has spread to other retailers as well such as Target and Macy’s. And although other retailers aren’t using the Green Monday name, plenty have embraced sales on Monday and beyond, including

Best Buy, Amazon and Walmart.

Here’s what you need to know about yet another holiday shopping event.

What is Green Monday?

Sometimes referred to as Cyber Monday 2, Green Monday falls on the second Monday of December. The term was coined by eBay in 2007, representing one of the company’s biggest sales days of the year.

Neil Saunders, managing director of research firm GlobalData Retail, says Green Monday also is a time when consumers are focused on getting their holiday shopping completed so gifts will arrive in time for Christmas.

“It’s a bit of an artificial day in a way, but there are reasons why consumers now start to focus their attention more online for spending than they have done over the past couple weeks,” said Saunders.

But it's not just about Green Monday.

Although some retailers don’t formally celebrate Green Monday, they offer plenty of sales through their own “12 Days of Deals” promotions that run during that Monday.

For example, Best Buy kicked off its deals on Monday through Dec. 20, with sales on televisions, tablets and other gadgets. Meanwhile, Walmart and Amazon have their own days of deals with similar offerings.

Why does Green Monday exist?

It’s likely the same reason Black Friday and Cyber Monday thrive: Retailers really want those cash registers ringing.

“There is a lot of reluctance to spend among consumers, although the economy is still doing quite well, and retailers have to pull out all of the stops to get consumers spending,” Saunders said.

Do we really need all these shopping days?

Not really. “Consumers just have fatigue with them,” said Saunders. “No one can keep track of what all these different days are and what they’re supposed to mean.”

Also, as Saunders points out, retailers always are offering promotions, whether it’s Green Monday or, well, Tuesday.

“All they’re really doing is sweeping promotions under the banner of different days,” he says. “Consumers probably notice that.”

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