Black Friday has become synonymous with cut-price deals – but one retailer is pulling out of the annual event.
Black Friday has become synonymous with cut-price deals – but one retailer is pulling out of the annual event.
B&Q has announced it is abandoning Black Friday in favour of offering year-round low prices across the store. The policy was first introduced store-wide with a £100m investment in July this year and has been in place on kitchens since 2014.
The decision also comes as research commissioned by B&Q found that shoppers place more trust in retailers who keep their prices low 12 months a year than others that run frequent sales and occasional offers.
Half of people surveyed (46 per cent) admit they aren’t planning to shop in this year’s Black Friday sales, while nearly half (43 per cent) said they often or always returned items after regretting purchases made in short-term, dramatic sales.
A third of people (29 per cent) confess to feeling like they must make a quick decision to take advantage of fleeting price drops, and many are being lured into impulse buying (16 per cent), ultimately leading to ‘shopper’s regret’.
Paul White, commercial director at B&Q, said: “Shoppers have told us they trust stable low prices far more than ‘here today, gone tomorrow’ deals, which is why we have invested £100m in our year-round low prices across the store.
“Our pricing is all part of B&Q’s strategy to help make home improvement more affordable for all customers. This year, over 3,000 new low prices have been introduced for great quality products.
“Our everyday low prices mean shoppers don’t have to impulse buy to get the best deal. For us, it’s ‘Black Friday’ every day so you can get started and do it now.”
