I Love Black Friday! Confessions of a Budget Shopper

By: Jackie White

I know there are people like me out there. People you love the thrill of getting a bargain! Garage sales, thrifting or even grabbing something off the side of the road is like riding a rollercoaster as the adrenaline shoots through the veins! But if that is such a rush, sales on Black Friday are like jumping-out-of-a-plane rush! For bargain shoppers like me, this is Nirvana! That is before Black Friday became the watered-down version it is today. Now, it starts in October and the sales hit periodically up until the real Black Friday. Honestly, for people like me it’s just not as fun. It’s like the hunt for the deal doesn’t really exist anymore.

I remember back in the day when I would make sure I got the newspaper of Thanksgiving day and I combed it with anticipation. I would circle the deals and plot out my plan of attack. Each deal would carefully be input into my color-coded spreadsheet, so I’d know which store had which deal. Then my friend and I would get up at the crack and begin to hit the stores. We would line up with all the other crazies, who by the way, were very nice and seemingly loved the hunt as much as we did. The store worker would open the door like opening the gates to let the wild animals in the stores and we would “walk fast”, no running or stampeding anyone down! We would make our way to the deals with our own large shopping bags in hand. This was key to fast movement throughout the store because if you get a cart, you are stuck behind people. The big shopping bags help us move like gazelles across the aisles so we can knab the deals we came for! One rule to follow was to not get distracted by other things! Keep moving until you have the item you want in hand and then quickly move to the check out and then on to the next store.

We would do this all morning until the sun came up and when we had purchased what we came for, we would grab breakfast and gloat over the deals we got! There is no finer pride in knowing just how much you saved!

Today, I still Black Friday shop. I have to go out on Thanksgiving now if I really want to get certain “doorbuster” deals. It’s still fun, but by the time I do go, I likely have ordered much of the stuff I wanted that is on sale online. I won’t lie though, once Thanksgiving dinner is winding down, I do get another shot of energy knowing that I will be going out and hopefully will grabbing some deals and even possibly finishing my holiday shopping! We have even made it a tradition that my kids and I meet up with my niece and we hit the sales after Thanksgiving dinner.

Do I miss the old days of scrambling in the wee hours of the morning for deals? Yes, I do, but the positive take on this is that there are more opportunities to snag a good deal. Now, for you nay-sayers, this really isn’t about diminishing a holiday with materialistic needs. For me, I am just trying to stretch a buck and maybe purchase something I wouldn’t normally be able to purchase. I also wait to replenish things in my home at this time of year. Things like towels, picture frames, pillows, blankets and such because the prices are far lower than they usually are during the year.

Round Two
The only thing better than Black Friday deals are the After-Christmas deals! For round two of bargain shopping, we scavenge what’s left over for wrapping, gift items or holiday items we can use next year. These deals are usually anywhere from 75 – 90 percent off retail price. It’s definitely worth it! The only trick with this strategy is that you have to remember where you have hidden your treasures and that you remember to pull them out for the next year!

I know for all you non-bargain shoppers, you think this is nuts, but for my people – the bargain shoppers they understand. The excitement of a marked down tag, the delight in finding something you want in clearance (Clearance is my best friend) and the holy grail of Black Friday deals speak to my fellow bargain shoppers like music to their ears.
This Thanksgiving holiday week-end, I wish you much happiness, time with family, joy of the season and for my peeps – dang good sales!
Shine On.