At least one of the presents under the Christmas tree this year could be an unwanted Black Friday deal, that’s according to new research from Novuna Consumer Finance, which found that a third (30 per cent) of Black Friday shoppers will regift items this Christmas they regret buying for themselves.
Unwanted Black Friday deals worth £707m will be regifted this month, as people prefer to wrap their buyer’s remorse up in a bow rather than attempt to return unwanted items to a retailer.
Two in five (39 per cent) Brits took part in this year’s Black Friday, some 2.8million more than the 34 per cent that planned to ahead of the seasonal sales, equating to a record-breaking Black Friday. It was particularly popular with younger generations this year, with most (53 per cent) 18 to 34-year-olds getting involved, compared to just one in five (19 per cent) people aged over 55.
Similar to previous years, the most common reasons given for Black Friday spending were to get some Christmas shopping done (31 per cent) and bag a good deal (26 per cent). However, two in three (63 per cent) shoppers report that the cost of living crisis affected how they spent money this year. One in four (24 per cent) said cost of living pressures had given them less money to spend, while many others opted to take advantage of the discounts to stock up on household essentials (13 per cent), energy saving items (13 per cent), or to get more early Christmas shopping done than usual (18 per cent).
Brian Flesk, head of retail at Novuna Consumer Finance, said: “Like it or loathe it, Black Friday is one of the biggest days for retailers within the Golden Quarter, just as it is for the millions of bargain hunters seeking a to grab a good deal. However, pressure to take advantage of the discounts can often lead to impulsive spending with shoppers subsequently left with a dilemma about what to do with unwanted goods.”
Despite the popularity of this year’s Black Friday sales, a third (31 per cent) of shoppers regret at least one of their purchases. Men are twice as likely as women to have buyer’s remorse, 43 per cent vs 20 per cent, and half (49 per cent) of 18- to 34-year-olds admit there’s at least one thing they wish they hadn’t bought. Clothing (16 per cent), shoes (13 per cent) and computer tech (12 per cent) were the biggest unwanted items, with a quarter (26 per cent) of shoppers saying their partner’s annoyance at the purchase was the main reason for their regret.
Returning unwanted items isn’t as tricky as it used to be, with most people agreeing that return policies and processes have become easier in the past couple of years. And yet, one in five (20 per cent) people have failed to return something they wanted to in the past year, costing each of those people an average of £133 per year, citing complicated returns policies (26 per cent), missed deadlines (26 per cent), and even extra difficulty returning items bought on finance (13 per cent).
No wonder so many more Black Friday shoppers are opting to regift unwanted purchases (30 per cent) than to attempt to return to a retailer (18 per cent). Novuna’s research found that unwanted Black Friday deals worth £707 million will be regifted this Christmas. For each person doing so, that’s an average of £195 of Black Friday fails that will end up under someone else’s tree this year, a significant chunk of the £266 average spent on Christmas presents this year.
“At a time when finances are being stretched to the limit, it’s good to see that many people have found a way to make the Black Friday sales work for them, albeit inadvertently in many instances through regifting unwanted items,” continued Flesk.
“As we reflect on this year’s Black Friday sales, and the remainder of what is the busiest shopping period of the year still to come, I would urge shoppers to think twice before making unplanned purchases, always checking the returns policy to be assured they can expect a good level of after sales service.”
Londoners have the most Black Friday regret, with half (49 per cent) of sale shoppers wishing they hadn’t bought what they had, followed by people living in Scotland (44 per cent). The Northern Irish and North Westerners were the least regretful Black Friday shoppers, with only 16 per cent and 22 per cent respectively having doubts about what they’d bought.
Share