Are Black Friday Deals Really Worth-it?

When "black Friday deals" first hit the shores of South Africa in 2012, most of us didn't know what it was about, but still fell over ourselves for the special offers, especially in Tech.

"Black Friday" is actually a concept that started in the United States and falls on the day after the American holiday of Thanksgiving. So coined in the early 60's due to "describe the heavy pedestrian and vehicular traffic that would occur on the day after Thanksgiving". It was later used as a draw card for sales on this day - originally in-store only, but now both in-store and online. "Cyber Monday" was later coined for the Monday immediately following Black Friday and reserved for online sales only.

For a couple of years it was the highlight of retailers like Takealot's annual turnover, Christmas aside. In more recent years, South Africans have felt that the occasion was used to either pawn off products that would otherwise not sell in the year, or inflate prices for this period, so it appears that products are hugely discounted.

During the last two years, although sales have still been really good, South Africans have been a little more conservative with spending their money on Black Friday deals. Now that things have returned to a more semi-normal state as regards the pandemic, we wonder if 2021's sale will show a steep curve on spending compared to the last two years.

Keeping all of this in mind, and with Black Friday fast approaching on 26 November, here are some of the specials and retailers we thought worth a visit if you're so inclined.

Black Friday Deals for 2021

• Makro
  • As with every year Makro has something in every category on sale and is a good place to start your search on general items. From pet products and liquor to home appliances and entertainment.
  • Early favourites :
    • Bennett Read 6 Pressure Cooker for R959
    • Midea 8l Airfryer for R1,499
    • LG 165cm (65") Smart Nanocell UHD ThinQ AI TV for R14,999
    • Megamaster Evolution 500 Pro Gas Braai for R7,999
    • Johnnie Walker Gold Reserve Blended Scotch Whisky (1 x 750 ml) for R499
• Takealot
  • As with every year Takealot has something in every category on sale and is another great place to start your search on general items. Takealot, of course, also runs additional weekly specials leading up to Black Friday, so it's a good idea to sign-up to their newsletter to see what specials that week might hold.
  • Sometimes the special deals are on winter goodies like heaters, electric blankets etc - don't discount these just as we're moving into summer as it could be a great opportunity to stock up on your winter essentials for next year!
  • Early favourites :
    • The Veggie Bullet from Nutribullet for R1,900
    • Hisense-65" UHD Android Smart TV with HDR Dolby Vision & Bluetooth for R 12,399
    • Bombay Sapphire Gin - 750mL for R249 per bottle
    • Bosch - 8kg, 1400rpm Washing Machine Serie 4 SpeedPerfect - Silver Inox for R6,999
• Woolworths
  • Woolworths is also putting something from all their categories on sale. Here you can find everything from food to household items and clothing. If you spend long enough time going through the specials you might find something worthwhile. If you're looking for items for Christmas lunch or gifts, this is a great place to find that.
  • Early favourites:
    • Lindt Lindor balls - set of 3 packs for R84 per box. (30% off the usual price). All chocolate promotions at Woolies .
• Pet Hero
  • An online store offering a range of pet food such as Royal Canin, Hills, Field and Forest and Acana. Their Black Friday pet food deals are okay, but at these price ranges any discount helps. Sadly the discounts only seem valid on the biggest bags in the range.
  • Early favourites:
    • Acana Classics Prairie Poultry Dog - buy 2 of the 17kg and the second bag is 50% off. So basically -25% per bag.
    • Hill's Science Plan Adult Sensitive Stomach & Skin Medium Dry Dog Food Chicken Flavour - buy 2 of the 12kg and the second bag is 50% off. So basically -25% per bag.

What Should Be in Your Cyber Monday Wishlist?

Cyber Monday is usually reserved for the Monday following Black Friday and has become a popular day dedicated to online sales only. Most retailers do include online sales as part of Black Friday, but traditionally Black Friday was reserved for in-store specials as opposed to online.

We haven't noticed any specific deals mentioned for Cyber Monday yet, however we did notice that many of the same retailers are also having Cyber Monday deals.

Whether you're the sales-type shopper or not, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are going to be coming at you heavily for the next couple of weeks.

We noticed that MTN and Vodacom are also offering deals on packages and devices as part of their Black Friday deals, but unlike previous years the ISPs don't seem to be participating in fibre deals this year. You can always count on Fibre Tiger to help you find the best deals any time of year. Whether signing up or switching, Fibre Tiger remains the easiest platform to find and compare the best fibre deals .