Rachel Forst – Special to the Southern News
The holiday season is almost here, with Thanksgiving just passing us, that meant time to relax, spend time with family, catch up on missed assignments, work, or decide what to buy on Black Friday. Black Friday, which was the day after Thanksgiving, is a day millions decided to go out shopping while some choose to stay at home and take advantage of online deals.
“I think it’s a good idea when it comes to Black Friday, but it does go to the extremes. Like Thanksgiving is forgotten. I stay home, usually too tired to go out,” said Bridget Rodgers, 19-year-old freshman from Southern. Many students on campus decided to stay home instead of going out into the madness that was Black Friday. According to Deal News, a website dedicated to bringing consumers the best deals available on the internet. About 66 percent of people who went most likely shopped online said their main reason was for doing so out of convenience, whereas 41 percent said they would be doing in-store shopping because they wanted to experience the excitement.
“I love Black Friday shopping and every year I go out and join in the madness. I think it’s fun to see what deals I can find,” said Lauren Czernota, 23-year-old social work student. While others seem to enjoy the excitement of shopping the day after Thanksgiving, many stores had opening their doors earlier in recent years for the masses to take advantage of the deals sooner. Many malls and department stores are opening up Thanksgiving night, such as the Westfield Post Mall in Milford which will be open at 12 a.m. midnight.
With many stores having huge deals to save on, many students are finding ways to save their money to go out into the madness of shopping. “Luckily I don’t have to spend any money on Thanksgiving because I always go to family gatherings or my boyfriend’s parents’ house so I get a good meal for free and I get to save my money for Black Friday,” said Czernota. Saving up or having any kind of budget for yourself would help. In a way to save money according to Deal News, only 66 percent will start their shopping before Black Friday, while only 19 percent will actually shop the day of.
While some students are planning on enjoying the shopping and saving, others are choosing to stay in and spend time with family. “My advice would be to stay home. Go out if there is something really expensive that is on sale that you want; join in on the madness,” said Rodgers. While others such as Chelsea Schillizzi, 21-year-old senior at Southern said, “If I do go out, I would just make a list. Make sure you know what you want before you go. Just go in and get out, don’t walk around.”
As for many students who choose to stay in and spend the day after Thanksgiving with family instead of shopping to those that choose to take part in the fun of shopping for themselves or family, one thing is said to be true that many take Black Friday shopping to extremes. “I think people take it to extremes for the good deals because they see it as a competition, kind of like, get it before the other person does,” said Czernota.
