There is nothing new about the retail sector’s Black Friday except that it seems to start earlier this year. The name comes from the hope that customers will do sufficient holiday shopping that they will convert eleven months or red ink into the black ink of a profit by the end of the year.
There is nothing new about the financial significance of the holiday shopping season. In fact, it even helped change the date we celebrate Thanksgiving. Prior to 1936, Thanksgiving was always the last Thursday of the month, but that year a group of retailer persuaded President Roosevelt to move the date to the fourth Thursday of November. It gave their customers an extra few days to do their shopping and put the retailers in the black for the year.
Thanksgiving Day is still the traditional kick-off to the holiday shopping season. In many cities, the big Christmas Parades were on Thanksgiving morning. Among them, the Macy Parade and Gimbel’s in New York City, Marshal Field in Chicago, Hudson of Detroit, and Wannamaker in Philadelphia. Today, the Macy Parade remains the country’s premier event, with the Marshal Field event still with us, but now renamed the State Street Thanksgiving Parade a few years ago. The next day, holiday shopping begins in earnest.
For a few years, not so long ago, on Thanksgiving Day people watched the parade, listened to or watched college football in the afternoon, ate a big dinner, and went to bed early. That way they could get up in the wee hours on Friday to get in line for the ‘door buster sales’ on Friday. Others never went to bed, but spent the midnight hours standing in line, waiting for the doors to open so they could stampede inside.
It seems we have a love-hate relationship with shopping this time of the year. Some of us like doing it because we want to get good gifts for friends and family, but the logistics are frustrating. It’s the drive to the mall, finding a parking space, the long lines, and more. Or, when we total up all the receipts, we have buyer’s remorse at how much we just spent. We also find ourselves getting caught up in the social, ethical, and moral decisions of our shopping. In the past, we did not think so much about these things and their implications. Now we do. That includes the Great Christmas Culture War of whether or not to shop at a store where you are greeted with “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.”
Before we venture out shopping, or turn to the internet to order our gifts online, let’s pause and look at a better way to do this. We begin with a list of names and potential gifts. Then we set out to shop locally.
Fourteen years ago the American Express company shifted their focus from keeping their credit cards exclusively for their more affluent customers to a wider market. They also instituted a new concept of Small Business Saturday. For those who still delighted in shopping on Black Friday, it was a reminder to visit their local and often much smaller stores the following day. It was good for customers, the store owners, and the local community.
Let’s switch that around. Instead of starting our shopping at the big box stores and the out of town malls, let’s begin in our own town.
I think a good first place to begin are the church holiday bazaars and the local non-profit organizations who sponsor crafters and other vendors. They are fun, and probably you will run into people you know. Just being there, even if you do not buy anything, is a show of community support.
The other day I visited a local bazaar and market. There were vendors took pride in the jewelry, soaps, and other items they made in their own workshops and at home. That meant there was a human connection that seems to me to be the heart and soul of Christmas. I bought some gifts for family members who are from away, knowing that they would never have the opportunity to find those items anywhere else. .
Money spent locally, this time of the year or any other time, stays local, and it recycles through the community. One micro-economist determined that a dollar spent at a local store changes hands seven times before it migrates out of town. That means more employment for local residents, more local shopping, more money invested in our restaurants, bars, and other places.
It means there is more financial support for our churches and local organizations. That means that our Scouts, 4-H, and a host of other important youth programs can continue and flourish. It means our libraries stay open, and the local theater groups can share their talents in the community. Your Christmas shopping helps make the good work done by the Allegan County Community Foundation, charitable groups, and our churches continue into the future.
Some of those dollars end up as taxes being paid to the local governments, paying for our roads, sidewalks, the infrastructure, our wildlife habitats, and our public safety. It helps make it possible for almost every village to city in the area sponsor various fun activities.
And finally, one more thing that is close to my heart – it makes it possible for us to have a local newspaper written by writers in the area – not syndicated pieces from away. Your holiday dollars make it possible for the local businesses to advertise their goods and services. Advertisements pay for the paper’s expenses – not subscriptions. We get to read about local sports, local government, and all the good and not so bad stuff.
To top it off, did you happen to notice the front-page right column above the fold on the first section. Mr. Wilcox is continuing his annual support and help for those who might have a horribly bleak Christmas. This really is a matter of giving back to the community, because you have made it possible for our businesses to keep their doors open, and in turn, they have advertised in our newspapers, and that makes it possible for Mr. Wilcox to help others.
Shopping local is an investment in the people and places closest to our hearts.
Today is the day to turn to the announcements and advertisements, the Community Calendar that gives the information for some interesting and fun events. Somewhere you will find inspiration for that perfect gift for the person who foolishly believes they already have everything. Go surprise them, and know you are doing a good thing for our communities. Truly, ‘communities’ is the operative word here, because we are all in this together.
