Black Friday: Is the seasonal sale really worth it? 

Is this seasonal sale really worth it? Really, it is only a bargain when you truly need the item

Caitríona Redmond: "Keeping a close eye on recommended retail prices of items that you want is always a good idea because it allows you to pounce when the price is right."

What is Black Friday? At its most literal definition, it is simply the Friday after that American celebration, Thanksgiving.

However, it is rapidly becoming the time where people worship the idols of retail and can spend a horrendous amount of money on household and Christmas items that they may not even need.

But... it also has the potential to be the one day of the year where you may be able to pick up something at a dramatic discount. All of this is to say that it is a sales event.

This event has transposed itself from the US to Ireland in the past decade, and the demand for sales has really increased.

Nowadays, you can expect to see a Black Friday sale everywhere. But a bargain is only a bargain if you need the item, and if you have the disposable income set to one side to pay for it.

Let us get the most important thing out of the way first. Repeat after me: “A bargain is only a bargain if you need the item, and you have the disposable income set to one side to pay for it.”

For example, if you need a washing machine and you have €500 set aside but you get it for €250 in a Black Friday sale, then it is a bargain and you have saved €250 . This is not ‘girl math’ this is ‘home economics maths’. If you wanted an item that cost €500 normally, but you got it for €250, which you had to put on your credit card, then you have not really saved €250.

Regular readers will know that at this point, it is nearly too late to be monitoring presales prices of products that are discounted this week.

The rules of items on sale are strict, and any items you see on sale this week must reflect the discount based on a former retail price in the previous 30 days. Several retailers have fallen foul of this legislation in recent years.

Remember what I said about a bargain? Keeping a close eye on recommended retail prices of items that you want is always a good idea because it allows you to pounce when the price is right.

I am sorry to be the bearer of more bad news, but Black Friday is like a flame to the moths of bad actors when it comes to cyber security. As we are all expecting discounts bargains and sales, consumers are ripe for cyber-attacks and phishing attacks offering bargains that may be too good to be true and that really involve someone stealing your personal and card data.

According to cyber security firm Secora, those sales days are a peak time for cybercriminals looking to exploit the surge in online activity and transaction volume. Ways around this risk include:

• Using a one-off virtual payment card;
• Using PayPal;
• Only paying for items on a genuine website.

Always look for the lock key in the address bar. If you have any doubts about online payments, contact your bank directly. There is no harm in alerting them to a potential security risk rather than trying to retrieve funds that may have disappeared into a Black Friday hole.

The truth is that smaller Irish businesses and retailers will not be able to offer large discounts this week. This is a uniquely American sale season. We all know how difficult the cost-of-living crisis is hitting households up and down the country right now, and the same can be said for businesses.

There is a lot to be said too for supporting local and spending local. Bear in mind that if you spend your hard-earned cash on a global giant such as Amazon, that money may not always make its way into your local community. So, you may like to consider opting out of Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year.

For the uninitiated, Cyber Monday is the Monday after Black Friday and is generally associated with digital and technology deals.

Well, you know I love a bargain, but I always say that the money is better in my pocket than in somebody else’s. I would rather save my money for a rainy day because I have a feeling that there are plenty of those coming after Christmas has passed. So, unless one of the household appliances breaks down between now and Friday, I do not intend on shopping online in the next week.

If you’re making a list for Christmas, make sure you check it twice. If that mantra’s good enough for Santa, it’s good enough for you. Set a budget for gifts and don’t get tempted spending more than you intend because ultimately, you will still have to find the money for whatever you buy.

Yes, I am one of those insufferable people who has already done her Christmas shopping, and I am very relieved to be at that point because I intend to use the month of December to wind down gently to the Christmas season. Not long now!

Redmond Recommends

· Put any item you want into a virtual shopping basket now and write down the current sales price in a safe place. If the price drops on Friday then you can consider whether it’s a bargain or not.

· You will save more money in any sale by not buying anything.

· If you receive any offers by email, be careful not to click on the links unless you are 100% confident of the origin. Navigate to the seller’s website directly instead.

· There’s little point in buying a Christmas present that may not arrive on time. Check the sales terms, delivery timeframe and returns policy on anything you buy this week.