The 'Booksellers Association of the United Kingdom and Ireland' recently launched an anti-Black Friday campaign called 'Civilized Sunday.' Each year, shoppers spend the Friday after Thanksgiving throwing themselves into a shopping frenzy. Instead of taking advantage of the shopping holiday, these retailers have decided to suggest an alternative.
Civilized Sunday is an anti-Black Friday campaign promoted by a number of independent bookstores in the UK. The fictional holiday is designed to offer an alternative to the shopping frenzy that characterizes Black Friday each year. As the Booksellers Association explains, the holiday is "intended as a restorative to Black Friday, the now-traditional retail scrum that kicks off the Christmas shopping season." As part of the campaign, bookstores will spend the Saturday after Black Friday playing classical music and serving wine. The hope is that consumers will abandoned the frenzied approach to buying, which will ultimately create a more civilized shopping environment.
Although it seems that Black Friday is here to stay, Civilized Saturday could help to encourage a more peaceful shopping environment.
Anti-Black Friday Campaigns
These Retailers are Celebrating an Alternative Shopping Holiday
Trend Themes
1. Anti-black Friday Campaigns - Potential disruptive innovation opportunity: Developing alternative shopping holidays that promote a more peaceful and civilized shopping experience.
2. Alternative Shopping Holidays - Potential disruptive innovation opportunity: Creating new holidays that offer alternative ways to shop and engage with consumers, avoiding the frenzy of traditional shopping events like Black Friday.
3. Restorative Shopping Experiences - Potential disruptive innovation opportunity: Designing shopping experiences that prioritize relaxation, enjoyment, and a more civilized approach to buying.
Industry Implications
1. Retail - Potential disruptive innovation opportunity: Rethinking the traditional approach to retail by promoting alternative shopping holidays and restorative shopping experiences.
2. Bookstores - Potential disruptive innovation opportunity: Embracing the Civilized Sunday campaign and offering a peaceful shopping environment to attract consumers who seek an alternative to the frenzy of Black Friday.
3. Event Planning - Potential disruptive innovation opportunity: Creating unique and alternative shopping events, like Civilized Sunday, to provide consumers with a more enjoyable and civilized shopping experience.