NF-2

• Discount - To lower the price = J

• Stumble - To trip or lose one's balance = D

• Unfounded - Not based on fact or reason = P

• Basis - The foundation or starting point = L

• Origin - The beginning or source = U

• Random - Happening without a specific plan or pattern = W

• Manipulate - To control someone or something = B

• Audacious - Bold and daring = A

• Gamble - To risk money on a game or chance = R

• Scheme - A plan, often secret = V

• Far cry - Very different = F

• Frenzy - Excited or uncontrolled behavior = C

• Mayhem - Chaos and confusion = S

• Shoplifting - Stealing goods from a shop = N

• Retailer - A person that sells something = H

• Associate - A person who works with another person = Q

• Rebrand - To give a new image to something = E

• Disorder - A state of confusion or lack of order = X

• Extravaganza - A spectacular show or event = G

• Snag - To take something = O

• Impact - An effect or result = I

• Consumption - To use up goods or services = K

• Opt out - To choose not to participate = T

• Meltdown - A catastrophic failure = M

• Let's choose a random number between 1 and 10. (Slumpmässig)

• She stumbled and fell on the icy sidewalk. (Snubbla)

• The computer system had a complete meltdown. (Sammanbrott)

• Shoplifting is a crime that can lead to serious consequences. (Snatteri)

• The company decided to rebrand itself to attract a younger audience. (Ommärka)

• His fears were unfounded; there was nothing to worry about. (Ogrundade)

• The crowd was in a frenzy after the team scored the winning goal. (Vansinne)

All right, so Black Friday, huh? It's kind of crazy how this whole thing turned into, like, the shopping event of the year. 

Yeah, you think it's just about, you know, fighting over discounted TVs the day after Thanksgiving, but the real story goes way back, like way, way back. 

Seriously, I had no idea until I saw these articles we've got from AP News, learn English, and even Victoriaplum.com, which, fun fact, is actually a bathroom retailer. So you ready to dive into this whole Black Friday thing? 

Absolutely. Let's do it. 

Okay. So like one of the first things I stumbled on was that rumor about Black Friday being linked to the slave trade. Have you heard that one? 

Oh, yeah. That one makes the rounds every year. But honestly, it's completely unfounded. There's really no historical basis for it at all. 

Good to know. Good to know. So. If it's not that, then, like, what is the real origin story? These sources seem to all agree that it starts in 1869, which seems super random. 

It's not random at all, actually. 1869 was the year of a huge Wall Street crash. Two guys, Jim Fisk and Jay Gold, were trying to corner the gold market. 

Corner the gold market. What does that even mean? 

Basically, they were trying to buy up as much gold as they could to inflate the price. 

Oh, wow. So they were trying to manipulate the entire market. That's a... That's pretty audacious. 

It was a huge gamble, and it totally blew up in their faces, their little scheme through the economy into chaos. And that day, September 24th, became known as Black Friday, the very first one. 

Wow. I had no idea the original Black Friday was about a Wall Street crash. 

Yeah, it's a pretty far cry from what we think of now. 

Yeah. It's interesting how it went from like this day of financial panic to... Well, a different kind of frenzy, I guess. 

Right. But the chaos associated with Black Friday didn't end there. In the mid-20th century, Philadelphia became the next Black Friday hotspot. 

Philadelphia. Really? 

Why Philadelphia? Well, every year after the Army Navy football game, the city would just like completely descend into mayhem. Huge traffic jams, shoplifting incidents going through the roof. Police working overtime, it was a mess. 

Wow, I can definitely see why they'd call that Black Friday. But still, we're not quite at the whole, like, people camping out for sales thing yet, right? Not yet. But this is where things start to get really interesting. See, retailers knew people had this negative association with Black Friday. Some even tried to rebrand it as Big Friday, you know, trying to get rid of that connection to disorder. 

Big Friday. I mean, you gotta give them points for trying. 

Right. But it just didn't stick. Black Friday was here to stay. Though, as you'll see, for totally different reasons than that Wall Street crash. 

So we've got Wall Street crashes. We've got football riots. And somewhere in there. Black Friday becomes like synonymous with shopping. How does that happen? 

Yeah, it's quite a transformation. Our sources point to a few key things. For one, retailers really leaned into the whole marketing angle. 

Makes sense. I mean, I'm seeing here that Macy's was already having these big post- Thanksgiving sales back in the 1920s. Right, but it was really towards the end of the 20th century that things like exploded. Black Friday deals started earlier and earlier, turning it into this huge shopping extravaganza that lasted a whole week, sometimes longer. 

Yeah, and suddenly you've got people camping out in front of stores and everything, right? 

Exactly. Black Friday became an event, you know. It created this sense of urgency, this like competitive shopping thing. Could you snag that amazing deal before it was gone? 

It's funny because then you have the whole rise of online shopping, which kind of changes the game again.

No huge impacts. 

You don't have to brave the crowds in the cold. You can just like shop from your couch. Exactly. 

And it meant that Black Friday wasn't limited by geography anymore. 

So it goes global. 

Our friends over at Victoriaplum.com actually point to Amazon as a big reason Black Friday took off in the UK. They launched their first big Black Friday sale in 2010. And, well, you know the rest of the story. 

Wow. So Black Friday goes international. 

Uh-huh. 

But it's not all about, you know, scoring the cheapest TV anymore, right? I'm seeing some pushback against the whole consumerism aspect of Black Friday these days. 

Definitely. People are becoming much more aware of, like, the environmental and ethical implications of mass consumption. 

Yeah. 

Our article from AP News talks about how some brands, especially in fashion, are opting out of Black Friday altogether. 

Interesting. So it's this weird balance now. You have this huge push to buy, buy, buy. But then this other movement saying, you know, maybe buy less. 

It's a real dilemma, especially as we head into the holiday season. 

Totally. It makes you think. Speaking of which, I do wonder how this whole online shopping boom, and specifically Cyber Monday, has impacted Black Friday. So Cyber Monday. It's kind of a big deal now, right? 

It's huge. Like, even bigger than Black Friday when it comes to online shopping, at least. 

Seriously? Yeah, Adobe Analytics, they track all this stuff, and they found that Cyber Monday actually brings in more online sales than Black Friday. 

Wow. I guess that makes sense, but it makes you wonder, like, is traditional Black Friday on its way out then? 

It's interesting because even with everyone shopping online now, Black Friday is still a big deal, culturally speaking. At least that's what our AP news article suggests. 

Yeah, that's true. There's something about Black Friday, you know? Like, it's an event. 

Totally. And I think part of it is that social aspect, you know, like, you don't really get that same experience shopping online. 

You're like going out with your friends waiting in line. 

Exactly. It's a tradition for a lot of people. 

Yeah. Plus, let's be real, there's still something exciting about snagging a great deal in person, even if it's just on like a coffee maker or something. 

Oh, absolutely. It's the thrill of the hunt. 

Totally. So we've covered a lot of ground here. We've gone from Wall Street to, well, bathroom retailer. 

It was quite the journey. 

It is. But before we wrap up, I am curious about one thing. Like, how does the rest of the world celebrate Black Friday? Are there any fun international twists? 

Definitely. Like, in some places, they've given Black Friday a more local name. In the UAE, for example, they call it White Friday. 

White Friday. Interesting. Yeah. And in Mexico, it's El Buen Finn, which means the good end. 

That's cool. I guess no matter where you go, everyone loves a good bargain. 

It's a universal language. 

That's a good way to put it. Yeah. So there you have it. Black Friday. A wild ride through history from financial meltdowns to the evolution of how we shop. 

And it really makes you think about how much our shopping habits have changed over time, doesn't it? 

It does. And as we head into Black Friday this year, it makes you wonder... Are we really in control of our spending or are we just playing into some big marketing scheme? 

Right. Food for thought. 

Definitely. Well, on that note, happy shopping everyone or maybe happy mindful spending. You decide. Until next time, keep on diving deeper.