More bang for your buck? Retailers offer better deals on Black Friday amid excess inventory

Black Friday is undoubtedly one of the biggest shopping days of the year.

Best Buy on London, Ont.’s Wellington Road opened at 8 a.m. on Friday with 50 people lined up outside, the store leader said.

Many arrived early in order to beat the expected afternoon rush.

“Since it’s not a holiday, just a regular Friday, we will be extremely busy after four o' clock,” said Erin Plet, Best Buy’s store leader.

“I picked up a TV and a stand for it. I thought I’d take advantage of the Black Friday,” said Nick, a shopper who acknowledged a lot of people are spending a little more this time of year.

Despite high inflation many didn’t want to miss out on the deals of the week.

“We have actually have seen a lift in store sales versus the last couple of years because of COVID — there was a shift to online for a few years,” Plet said.

“It’s amazing…we just came for two dash cameras and a backup camera but we couldn’t take our eyes off the other deals,” said another shopper. “I’m probably going to buy something else too.”

There were mixed reviews on Friday by shoppers, as some were happy with the prices, while others thought they could be better, since several retailers began their Black Friday sales weeks in advance.

Last year retailers struggled with having less inventory. But this season, however, some businesses have too much, which is why discounts might be better this time around, according to one retail expert.

“Consumers probably won’t buy anything unless it’s really, really discounted,” said Bruce Winder, an author and retail expert. “The other thing is select retailers have inventory and these retailers are motivated to blow out that and liquidate it before the New Year.”

And the discounts won’t come to a halt on Friday with Cyber Monday just around the corner.