It is that time of the year again. Black Friday and Tech Tuesday are just around the corner and oh, yes, the festive season starts again.
What does this mean? Well it means spending more money on things you might not need.
We, like most South Africans, think of Black Friday as a way of buying those big-ticket items for a cheaper price and thereby saving a few bucks. But, in certain cases, the savings we thought we were getting leads us into more debt.
Nevertheless, Black Friday is upon us, so here are a few specials some of SA’s biggest retailers are offering:
GAME
“After two-consecutive years of month-long Black November deals, due to the Covid pandemic, Game is returning to its one-day Black Friday sale and bringing back midnight openings in 2022,” the store said.
The mega retailer will open most of its 108 stores across the country from Friday, November 25, at midnight. it will run until 8pm. This will allow shoppers more time to get their hands on never-to-be-repeated deals.
Game said it would be offering its largest online range for Black Friday, giving consumers who prefer to shop from home more choice, with free delivery on all online orders of more than R450 made between midnight and 11.59pm on Friday, November 25.
SHOPRITE
Shoprite will also be back with its Black Friday deals this year. The company told BusinessTech that “recognising the financial pressures of its customers and the continued rising cost of inflation, extensive planning is done months in advance to ensure customers receive the very best Black Friday experience”.
“Details about this year’s deep-cut Black Friday details will be shared in due course,” the company said.
WOOLWORTHS
Woolworths said it would also be continuing with its Black Friday savings next month. The company said it had also launched savings deals for its WRewards client, with up to 30% off on selected food, fashion, homeware and beauty products this Black Friday.
SOME DEBT ADVICE THIS BLACK FRIDAY
Business Report spoke to Nosiphiwo Nxawe, the collections and payments manager at DebtBusters, who offered advice for shoppers this Black Friday.
Nxawe said that besides the year-end summer holidays and festive season, there was plenty to tempt consumers during the last quarter of the year.
However, “it’s important to remember that in previous years, low inflation and interest rates have helped shield consumers. Now there is upward pressure on inflation and the Reserve Bank is likely to keep increasing increase interest rates”, Nxawe said.
“Consumers who took advantage of low interest rates to get a bond or finance a car are at most at risk as interest rate increases immediately impact them, increasing their monthly payments.
“Nominal income is the same as 2016, but when cumulative inflation over the past six years is considered, purchasing power has declined by 34%. Inflation in 2022 is significantly higher than any time since 2016. This, combined with successive interest-rate increases and no income growth, will intensify the pressure on consumers.
“Consumers applying for debt counselling are spending about 63% of take-home pay to service their debt. Those earning between R10 000 and R20 000 per month are most feeling the pressures of both interest and inflationary increases. The overall debt-to-income ratio for this group, at 127%, is close to the highest recorded.
“The bottom line is that if you have debt obligations, now is a risky time to be spending money unnecessarily, especially if that means taking on more debt. If you are in a situation where the combination of your monthly expenditure and debt repayments regularly exceeds your income you may need help.”
Will you be buying things this Black Friday?
— Business Report (@busrep) October 25, 2022
BUSINESS REPORT