by Akua Hinds

Created on: May 27, 2010   Last Updated: May 28, 2010

American Thanksgiving is about six months away and I’m already preparing myself to give thanks- thanks to the retailers, that is.  As a Canadian, I am accustomed to celebrating my Thanksgiving holidays during the month of October along with the rest of Canadians.  People who live outside of North America do not always realize that Canadians and Americans don’t celebrate Thanksgiving at the same time. 

Canadian Thanksgiving is held at the beginning of October and American Thanksgiving is held in November, one month before Christmas.  Our Thanksgivings in Canada are relatively subdued compared to American Thanksgivings.  Our holiday day off is the Monday, called Thanksgiving Monday.  Government businesses as well as malls and stores are closed.  Many Canadians travel across the country to spend time with their families, enjoy their holiday meal and rest up at home.  Americans celebrate Thanksgiving differently- they shop! 

Black Friday, as it is affectionately called, is a glorious day like no other where the retailers drastically slash prices on merchandise, hoping to get rid of the inventory before the calendar year ends.  From 4 o'clock in the morning, Americans line up in the stores and malls to stake their claim on marked down items ranging from clothing and shoes to electronics and furniture. 

I fondly experienced a Black Friday shopping trip in Florida a few years ago and from then on, I was hopelessly smitten with the business practices of my neighbors south of the border.  It makes perfect sense to risk dealing with the large crowds to snag some Black Friday bargains because you would be saving money on Christmas gifts and other items that you want and need.  At no other time during the year will prices be as low as they are than during the Black Friday Thanksgiving sales.  Yes, there will be the long and tedious line-ups in the store and impatient customers and store clerks to deal with.  But, there will also be beautiful items on display for unheard of prices! 

On my Black Friday shopping trip in Florida, I purchased a pair of gorgeous gold stilettos for five dollars!  They would have cost more than $60 dollars if they were bought any other day of the year.  Now, I don’t wear high heels very often, but that isn’t the point- the point is that I got gorgeous products that I could keep for myself or sell to someone else at a higher price, making myself a profit in the mean time.  Everyone knows that products are marked up a significant amount of money so that the retailers will make money to pay the store rent, advertising and employees.  We consumers might as well take advantage of the discount prices when we can.

I am thankful that I live close to the American border and I have already made plans with friends to drive to Buffalo this American Thanksgiving to take advantage of the great shopping deals.  Sure, there will be line ups and shoving from territorial customers who want to grab the best deals before everyone else.  But, there will also be savings that will bring smiles to the faces of all the shoppers who know deep in their hearts that the hectic day of shopping will be worth it because of the money saved. 

With the global economy in the state that it is in right now, Black Friday sales are very much needed to keep businesses booming and to keep families afloat.  With all of the positive things that the Thanksgiving Black Friday shopping sales can bring, I can’t think of a more wonderful reason to give thanks. 

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