Just 2% of Black Friday deals were cheapest on the day last year, says watchdog
21.11.2023 - 08:33
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Just two per cent of Black Friday deals were at their cheapest price on the day of the sales event last year, according to a study by a consumer watchdog.
Which? said the vast majority of deals - 86 per cent of them - were cheaper or the same price at other times and warned that offers 'should be taken with a pinch of salt'. The consumer group analysed 208 Black Friday deals last year at eight major home and technology retailers – Amazon, AO, Argos, Boots, Currys, John Lewis, Richer Sounds and Very.
The study looked at their prices every day in the six months before and after the sale day on November 25 - the day Black Friday was held in 2022. It found just five of the deals were at their cheapest on Black Friday itself.
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Black Friday sales often begin earlier in November and continue after the sale day itself, so Which? also extended the sales period to include November 18 until December 2, taking in ‘Cyber Monday’. It still found that 86 per cent of products were the same price or cheaper at other times of the year.
But companies hit back, claiming that Which? had not properly analysed enough deals or taken into account enough products. In one example in Which?'s research, Apple AirPods (2nd generation) headphones at both Argos and Currys were discounted from £139 to £119 but were cheaper than their Black Friday price every day between May 25 and September 9, when the price varied between £99 and £109.
The price only increased in September to £139 then dropped to £119 in Black Friday week. At Amazon, the Garmin Lily Sports Edition smart watch was