Reasons to NOT shop on Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Black Friday is now a well known day around the world, but traditionally it was for the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States. Many big department stores would take this opportunity to advertise huge sales and deals that draw in large crowds. Here is why it was called Black Friday. And then came Cyber Mondays, for online retailers. But over the past years, in order to compete with Cyber Monday sales with online retailers, department stores have started to advertise deals starting at midnight and now they have begun on Thanksgiving (or earlier!).  

Every year on Black Friday there are usually big ticket electronic items that attract long lines outside of electronics stores from 3 am. To get the newest TV or Laptop for a deal every year is a thrill to some people, but what happens to the old one? In order to buy the newest technology, chances are you are getting rid of one to make room. The United Nations describes this type of trash as E-waste, anything with a battery or plug. The saddest part is that this trash is hardly ever disposed of correctly.  Only 17.4% of e-waste is properly recycled, while between 60 and 90% is illegally dumped each year. In an ideal circular economy, electronic waste would go down significantly because the replaced technology would go back to the company that made it and they would recycle it into parts creating virtually zero waste.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday don’t just create waste but also impact the environment. The amount of energy that is used to produce these products at a high demand and ship them is astronomical. A misconception is that ordering online is more environmentally friendly than shopping in person but that is not the case. Studies show that collecting an item in store has a lower carbon footprint than getting an order delivered to your house. The fossil fuels burned for delivery are higher.

It is hard to predict how much will be bought every year for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and the way that retailers cope with this is by making too much. Textiles and clothes especially, and if it does not sell in time then most of it just gets thrown away instead of being recycled or sent to people who need it. For example, in the US, every year each person generates about 80 pounds of clothing related waste a year. Fast fashion is terrible for the environment. It is one of the fastest growing markets but it is also the 5th most polluting industry on the planet.

Another reason is that a large proportion of items purchased on Black Friday because people feel they are getting a great deal, often end up in landfill a few months after purchase. And in addition, on Cyber Mondays, most companies wrap their products in single use plastic that also ends up in the landfill.   

The solution? Buy sustainably and ethically instead, and boycott Black Friday and Cyber Monday! Studies show that about 98% of deals that are advertised on Black Friday were available 6 months prior anyways! 

Many independent brands will be boycotting Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year.  This movement brings light to unethical business practices. As consumers, if we boycott it then we send a strong message to companies that they won’t be able to just get rid of excess stock in a couple of days, and to start producing less. Many of the items you would purchase on Black Friday are available in a more sustainable form, from household items to Christmas gifts.

So this Black Friday and Cyber Monday, if you really need to shop, we challenge you to shop with a local, sustainable and ethical business instead!