British Black Friday Was Once Again A Wonderfully Civilized Occasion
Shoppers in Britain appear to be eschewing the chaos of Black Friday... again.
There were sedate scenes outside stores across the country on Friday morning, with videos and photographs showing a distinct lack of lines, violent brawls, wrestling over bargains or police involvement.
BBC journalist Kate West shared this clip of one person waiting outside a store in Manchester:
Aaaaaand it's open for Black Friday. The one keen guy 10 seconds in 😂 pic.twitter.com/py5bKw7olT
— Kate West (@Katewest0) November 24, 2017
Another BBC reporter, Frankie McCamley, shared a similar clip from the Currys PC World store on London’s Oxford Street.
It’s usually one of the country’s busiest retail areas, but not this morning:
And the doors are open.... the rush came and went (quickly) #BlackFriday @BBCLondonNews @BBC_HaveYourSay pic.twitter.com/jkUjFnhwMo
— Frankie McCamley (@Frankie_Mack) November 24, 2017
Outside the nearby John Lewis department store, the queues were similarly small and orderly:
Oxford Street has been incredibly quiet for #BlackFriday this morning but there are now some customers queueing outside John Lewis pic.twitter.com/HpyklBPiYe
— Vincent McAviney (@Vinny_LBC) November 24, 2017
Photographs taken by Barcroft Images showed an uncharacteristically quiet Oxford Street in the early hours:
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It was a similar story at the Whiteley’s shopping mall near Portsmouth, on the south coast:
There’s literally not a single queue for Black Friday at Whiteley’s shopping complex pic.twitter.com/bRYf7xRkeB
— Jack Gevertz🏳️🌈 (@jackgevertz) November 24, 2017
There were slightly more chaotic scenes at this Game video game store in east London, but people still waited patiently in line to pay:
Granted, these photographs and videos only show what went down at a select number of outlets. And things might grow busier over the course of the day.
The general consensus, however, was that the majority of places enjoyed a tranquil atmosphere ― which even made the experience for those shoppers who did attend somewhat pleasurable.
Britain latched on to the Black Friday craze in 2014. Manic scenes similar to those that often play out across the U.S. ensued. And this year, researchers predict around $3.4 billion will still be spent on deals in the U.K. on Friday alone.
But the adoption of Cyber Monday and offers being made available online appear to have dampened the enthusiasm for waking up early and fighting for a bargain.
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