What Black Friday Will Look Like During a Pandemic
Retailers direct customers to e-commerce
America’s biggest shopping day is going to look a little different this year. As many states still grapple with rising cases of COVID-19, businesses are trying to reimagine the shopping experience. The challenge of balancing reopening and safety is facing its biggest challenge yet.
Spreading out the deals
Rather than have a weekend-long event with long lines and amazing deals, stores are taking a much more methodical approach.
Best Buy
The tech retailer kicked off its holiday season this week by offering sales online and in person now through November 1. While stores are closed on Thanksgiving day, there are short events all throughout November leading into Best Buy’s “official” Black Friday starting on November 22:
- Nov. 5–8: The Wish List Sale
- Nov. 11: The Treat Yourself Sale
- Nov. 12–15: Our Coolest Deals Sale
- Nov. 16–17: My Best Buy Member Early Access Sale — Thousands of deals from the Black Friday ad available early, for My Best Buy Members only.
- Nov. 22: Black Friday Starts Now! — Nearly all Black Friday deals become available.
The biggest change will be in the number of customers in the store; there will be a capacity limit and social-distance measures in place. While the actual stores may not be packed, the lines to get into them will most likely be long. While it takes away some of the excitement, this may be the model going forward if the in-store experience is smooth and efficient.
Apple
While Apple is notorious for not offering many sales, its partners like Amazon and Walmart are hosting sales on specific products like the AirPods Pro and Apple Watch.
The biggest change for the holiday season will be the addition of Express stores. These built-in kiosks are placed in the front of Apple stores and allow customers to set up an appointment or order products online and pick up in the store.
The new iPhone 12 is expected to be a massive seller; the release was delayed due to the pandemic and iPhone sales were down 20 percent ahead of the new 5G device’s release. But Apple now says that iPhone sales are up 25 percent from this time last year.
Target
Similar to Best Buy, Target released a schedule of deals leading up to Black Friday. On Thanksgiving, stores will be closed as well.
What’s this mean going forward?
Brick-and-mortar retail has been one of the hardest-hit sectors from the coronavirus pandemic. Closed stores, limited traffic, and in-store barriers that make the shopping experience less enjoyable have all contributed to increased digital sales and decreased overall sales for many companies.
Black Friday has always been a logistical nightmare for both employees and consumers. Depending on how this holiday season goes, the omnichannel, diversified model may be here to stay. As customers get more comfortable ordering products online there may be less of a need to fight for a discounted TV in person. Pandemic or no pandemic, businesses will continue to innovate its digital infrastructure and merge traditional shopping with 21st-century buying.
