Black Friday, considered the busiest shopping day of the year in the United States, when items like clothing and electronics go on sale. Due to COVID-19 this year, most stores were closed on Thanksgiving while some were open on Black Friday.

This year, there was an increase in online sales with more than one hundred million people shopping online as stated by the National Retail Federation. According to Adobe Analytics, the total that consumers spent this year compared to last year grew by 21.6% on Black Friday alone! However, some stores here in San Diego such as Best Buy, Target, and Walmart were found to have long lines especially with COVID-19.

As for my personal experience of Black Friday this year, my family and I bought online instead. This was our first year buying things online for Black Friday and was a new experience for us. There were both pros and cons to online shopping. First, it was more peaceful and it was easier to find what we were looking for with the search bar. Second, shopping online removes the risks of contracting COVID-19 since we were shopping in the comfort of our home. Lastly, it was less time-consuming because we didn’t have to wait in lines or walk around trying to navigate where something is.

As for the cons, we can’t see what the product looks like in real life and have to depend on what the picture shows, sometimes it can look completely different in person. Next, when you put an item in your shopping cart, it can go out of stock and you wouldn’t be able to purchase it regardless of it being in your cart or not. Finally, it takes longer for the products to arrive and often, the products are shipped separately at different days/times, but this isn’t much of a problem for me.

With COVID-19 this year, there have been many changes in our lives and holidays. Everyone likes getting a good deal on products so online shopping has surged significantly this year. On an ending note, I hope everyone stays safe and healthy, don’t forget to follow COVID-19 guidelines!