Black Friday is here…or is it?

Walking through the mall this week, I could see Black Friday signs everywhere.

So I assumed it was today.

I came home and googled it to make sure.

And I see that sales for many large department stores in New Zealand have already started and some even run for a good couple of weeks.

To my surprise, Black Friday is actually next Friday, the 29th of November.

People are about to get in on the action though.

I read that according to a survey by PriceMe, 51% of Kiwis plan to shop on Black Friday this year, a sharp rise from 35% in 2023.

What’s more concerning is that 53% will use debt via credit cards, overdrafts, or Buy Now Pay Later. That’s a financial hangover waiting to happen.

It seems like a lot of people are looking to take advantage of these deals to get their festive shopping done a little bit cheaper.

I get it. That makes sense.

But if you are part of this 53%, you need to be very careful about going into debt in order to buy people material things they will probably throw out before next Black Friday.

You’ve still got seven days until the actual Black Friday.

In that time, why not go back to basics and clear out some of your own materialistic purchases in your household and turn them into cash and use that instead of going into debt?

Or give the gift of education and buy someone a physical book and write your Christmas wishes on the inside of the cover and maybe a meaningful note about why you thought it was a good idea for them to read it. Congratulations you’ve just saved yourself $9 for a Christmas card.

Yes, I know I sound a bit like the Black Friday or Christmas Grinch, but if you start 2025 (which will be another tight year financially for many people), on the back foot or in debt, you’re starting the year working to repay your decisions from this calendar year.

These are the little setbacks that we accept that actually stop us from investing or allocating funds towards one of our goals.

Now some of you are not going to be buying for the festive season and maybe your action is to tell friends, family or partners that they don’t need to spend money on you if you may suspect that they are doing it tough financially and, let’s be real, a lot of people are doing it very tough financially at the moment.

PriceMe’s survey found that the average New Zealander was expecting to spend $600 during Black Friday sales.

Us humans love feeling like we are getting a deal.

But is it REALLY a deal? Perhaps google the item and see what other prices it is listed for and what price it has previously been listed for.

Yes, Black Friday can be a goldmine for deals, but it’s also a day(weeks) when emotions, excitement, and clever marketing can lead to overspending or unwise purchases.

Remember, the best Black Friday strategy isn’t about snagging as many deals as possible.

This isn’t Deal or No Deal.

This is you making sure you actually need the deal!

I can guarantee you one thing - someone will be itching to email me to tell me how amazing Black Friday is because ‘they were going to buy all these things anyway’ and now they just got them cheaper.

I can guarantee you something else too - there will always be another sale.

So, before you click ‘add to cart’, take 5 minutes to review your finances and consider selling unused items to fund your purchases. You might be surprised by how much cash you already have sitting around your house OR how many prior Black Friday purchases you've never used...

Have a good weekend,

Luke

P.s. You are one of 11,600+ recipients. The KTC podcast had over 65,000 downloads in October. Feel free to share a lesson with someone to help this reach more people. ___________________________________________________________________________

Did you know: Americans are expected to spend $10billion dollars on Black Friday Sales online only. That's approximately 21,250 median-priced homes in New Zealand. Apparently, Cyber Monday is even bigger!

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