Black Friday Sales Continue to Increase in Europe

Discounts on so-called "Black Friday" are becoming increasingly popular among European consumers, according to GfK. In Italy, Germany, and France, sales of consumer tech goods saw a sharp rise compared to the Black Friday week of the previous year. Slightly lower growth was seen in Spain, while there was a flattened trend in the UK. The highest sales were generated from TV sets, smartphones, and notebooks.

In Europe's five biggest countries by population, however, there were differences in sales increases compared to the Black Friday week of the previous year. While sales in Italy increased significantly by 42 percent compared to last year, the increases in Germany and France were 15 percent and 13 percent, respectively. In Spain, sales increased by around seven percent. However, a flattened development was seen in the UK.

"Even in Europe, Black Friday is becoming increasingly popular. In some product areas, the discount war at the end of November generates even higher sales than the traditional shopping days before Christmas. The fact that consumers often go for higher value products on Black Friday is positive for trade. The price reductions are often used to buy a model with more features than usual," said Norbert Herzog, consumer expert at GfK.

Online retail particularly benefits from Black Friday. In Europe's five biggest countries by population, around 39 percent of Black Friday sales for consumer tech goods came from online retailers. Online retailers made about 167 percent more sales compared to average sales of a normal week. Retail trade in physical stores accounted for around 61 percent of Black Friday sales. Compared to a normal week, however, the increase in sales in retail trade was only around 94 percent.