Most Black Friday offers at a few of the nation’s greatest retailers are cheaper or the identical worth at different occasions of 12 months, in response to a Which? research.
In its research of final 12 months’s Black Friday season, the buyer champion discovered eight out of 10 merchandise weren’t at their finest worth.
It tracked 175 objects from eight main retailers within the 12 months to Could and located 83% have been cheaper or equal in worth a minimum of as soon as outdoors the four-week Black Friday interval (15 November to 12 December).
We have outlined the findings beneath – and a few fairly sturdy responses from the retailers concerned.
John Lewis was one of many worst culprits, with Which? discovering 94% of merchandise have been cheaper or the identical worth at one other time of 12 months.
One instance of an apparently dud deal discovered at John Lewis was a Samsung Jet Bot Robotic Vacuum Cleaner, which was £350 on Black Friday, however had been £299 for 29 days in Could and June 2024. It was £399 for 35 days in August to September, earlier than leaping to £500 in the course of the first week of October.
At Very, Which? discovered 93% of offers have been cheaper or the identical worth at one other time of 12 months.
One of many examples researchers discovered on the on-line retailer was the Dyson V11 Further Stick Vacuum Cleaner, which was £349 in the course of the Black Friday interval – but it surely was the identical worth on 29 days earlier than and on 41 days after the sale.
At AO, 85% of Black Friday offers have been on the similar worth or higher at different occasions of the 12 months.
Regardless of promising that sale objects wouldn’t have been cheaper within the six months earlier than Black Friday, 84% of offers at Currys have been accessible for a similar or a lower cost within the six months earlier than and after the gross sales interval.
Which? additionally discovered that Amazon’s Black Friday offers have been cheaper or the identical worth in 88% of circumstances, and cheaper in 63% of circumstances outdoors the gross sales interval.
In distinction, Richer Sounds had by far the perfect efficiency within the evaluation, with solely 55% of analysed merchandise discovered to be cheaper or the identical worth at different occasions of the 12 months.
The investigation additionally uncovered proof of outlets seeming to make use of advisable retail costs to make a deal seem extra beneficiant.
At Boots, Which? discovered an Oral B Vitality Professional Electrical Toothbrush marketed as “save £25, RRP £50”, however the product was cheaper or the identical worth for greater than 96% of the 12 months. The £50 RRP was solely in place for 13 days within the six months earlier than the sale.
Reena Sewraz, Which? retail editor, stated: “Our research exposes the harsh truth: for the majority of shoppers, Black Friday is a false economy. Retailers are relying on hype and urgency to push products that are the same price, or even cheaper, at other times of the year.
“There are good offers to be discovered however they are often few and much between. Our consultants sift via 1000’s of offers daily in the course of the gross sales to hand-pick real offers on merchandise we predict are price shopping for. Our recommendation is straightforward: take your time, do not be fooled by intelligent advertising and do your analysis.”
What did retailers have to say?
Amazon said it offered customers “nice worth all 12 months spherical”.
“Whereas Which? analysed simply 24 merchandise, Amazon’s Black Friday occasion provided lots of of 1000’s of offers to prospects within the UK. Moreover, a report in 2024 by Impartial analysts Profitero, reviewed over 9,000 merchandise and located that Amazon’s year-round costs are on common 15% decrease than different on-line retailers within the UK. Clients can store with confidence at Amazon, the place they’re going to discover on a regular basis low costs throughout a big selection of merchandise, all with the quick and handy supply they count on.”
AO said: “Clients know that Black Friday is now a minimum of a month-long promotion and is not a single day. It is nonetheless a superb time to purchase and offers prospects the chance to snap up a deal forward of Christmas. That should not imply we won’t provide sturdy worth year-round too – as these findings present, there’s nice offers available at different occasions too. We welcome scrutiny that helps prospects make knowledgeable selections, and our focus stays the identical, delivering nice worth daily of the 12 months, not simply on Black Friday.”
Currys said it was “elevating the bar” with its 2025 Black Friday sale, with every deal promising to be the lowest price ever offered.
“We acknowledge the commentary made by Which? that the worth of some Black Friday merchandise can drop even decrease sooner or later within the months that observe. That is regular and occurs throughout retailers, as they compete, as new fashions are launched, and as clearance cycles run. We’re happy that we’ve got the appropriate stability, providing a Black Friday deal set that’s particular with out limiting our capacity to offer prospects wonderful affords all 12 months spherical,” chief commercial officer Ed Connolly said.
John Lewis said customers could find brilliant deals all year round, and its Never Knowingly Undersold brand promise matched prices with 25 leading retailers: “Our Black Friday provide represents an awesome saving, and former affords replicate us price-matching a competitor’s short-term promotion, to ensure we stay unbeaten on worth.”
The Very Group said it was committed to delivering great value across its stores all year round.
Richer Sounds said it had a disclaimer on its website from early November until the close of our Black Friday promotion to say that anything marked as “Implausible Black Friday Worth” may have been at a lower price previously, but it was happy it still represented fantastic value.
“The place we marked up objects as ‘our lowest worth ever’ they meant simply that – we might by no means bought an merchandise for much less. The market could transfer after Black Friday and if so, we’ll at all times look to cross any additional financial savings on to our prospects,” it added.
Boots said it offered discounts on more than 20,000 products across the Black Friday period last year.
“Being a part of that promotional programme doesn’t preclude these traces from being on provide at different occasions all year long, as we attempt to ship nice worth for cash for our prospects daily,” it added.
