Black Friday: The truth behind the ominous tag for shoppers’ favourite weekend of the year

Thanksgiving may not really be a thing yet in India, but Black Friday? Bring it on! Choked malls and stores on Black Friday weekend is the norm: But how did it all begin? The most store-choking weekend of the year is here. Today, is Black Friday and even if you’re not among the ones thronging the malls and supermarkets, the aggressive advertising over the course of November certainly hasn’t left you oblivious of it, this year or any other. The brief for Black Friday, not just in India, but the world over, is quite simple. Jaw-dropping deals, fat discounts and unmissable offers to potentially land you your haul of the year. After all, who doesn’t love a good sale? Now the shopping frenzy and powering through the packed crowds are sure to keep you busy enough. But, when you’re catching a break between trial room sessions and which expensive import jar to buy at a steal deal price, ever wondered what landed you in this world of deals and discounts, scheduled to arrive on time like clockwork every year? The story is a bit dismal. Black Friday, as a term, actually never referred to a shopping spree at all. The first known mention of it, as per a Britannica report, was back in 1869. Wall Street financiers Jay Gould and Jim Fisk made an aggressive attempt to skyrocket the price of gold buying it in as much bulk as possible at the New York Gold Exchange. The plan was soon enough, intercepted President Ulysses S. Grant on September 24 — a Friday. The stock market then plummeted, instead of soaring as Gould and Fisk had wanted it to leading to bankruptcy for many. Less ominous, is the Black Friday etymology anecdote stemming from the 1960s Philly police. Thanksgiving weekend, as always, was big back then as well. What this led to then, was overwhelming chaos from a traffic perspective as people stepped out with their families for the weekend which also tied in with some errant civic issues. Further ahead, the 1980s, Black Fridays tended to signify how major retail chains regered their biggest profit turnovers on the said weekend, bringing their regers from out of the ‘red’ and into the ‘black’. So now that you’re all caught up with the lore of Black Friday, happy shopping!