The history of “Black Friday”

The history of Black Friday

The first organizer of Black Friday (much duration of time before its appearance) is regarded Franklin Woolworth (1852 -1919). He is the one who in 1873 in the small town of Lancaster in Pennsylvania staged the primary sale. When he was 21-year-old boy, he worked as a shop assistant. At that time the sellers themselves fixed the costs of the product, with good sight and wittiness, they had to figure out the creditworthiness of the buyer and only then to set estimates. Poor old Woolworth endured greatly due to this duty, and at times when he almost was fired, he figured out a skill. He dumped all seasonal goods on the counter and put a number sign “All five cents”.  During that day he did 6 of the proceeds of the shop, slammed the door and started his own company, where all had fixed price and had regular sales. So this was the start of the largest retail chain of the early twentieth century. 30 years later, Franklin Woolworth and U.S. President Woodrow Wilson opened the landmark of New York — 238-meter skyscraper Woolworth Building, which cost its owner $14 million.

At the time fixed prices and sales have become commonplace, the sellers understood that they got benefits before Christmas, when people purchased gifts. Therefore, there is a tradition to organize the big sales right after Thanksgiving and buyers have thirty days to make all purchases. The appearance of the term “Black Friday” happened much later.

In 1951, the magazine “Factory Management and Maintenance”: found out an interesting tendency: after Thanksgiving, many workers took days off for health reasons, but indeed wished to arrange a several-day mini holiday, possibly to quietly visit stores for finding discounts.

Meantime, the phrase “Black Friday” became to be used by police from Philadelphia, who were shocked by the unreal traffic jams which every year happened on Friday after Thanksgiving. Completely, there is another variant, which is why this day is called Black Friday. The fact is that accountants mark losses in red color and profits in black. So it is easy to understand that Friday after Thanksgiving is one of the most profitable periods of the year, and for sellers and for buyers!