Black Friday lacks real deals as users report inflated prices

Black Friday fades: year-round offers and dubious discounts

The last major showcase for mass consumption has arrived without a display window. According to most participants in the thread, this year's sales—once the justification for long queues and early mornings—have been reduced to a handful of discounts on clothing and footwear, while electronics and technology remain at virtually the same price. The complaint is repeated across online retail: what is advertised as a great deal is often just the label that was already there the previous month.

One participant says they saw a TV ad from a telecom provider defending its policy by stating that Black Friday is a US custom and that they offer good prices all year round. The argument is impeccable. It is also the perfect excuse not to lower anything.

Why are there no real Black Friday deals anymore?

The mechanism shoppers complain about is always the same and not new: raising the reference price a few weeks before and returning it later with a discount tag. One cited case involves a **tablet that had been priced at €139 for months** and remained exactly at €139 during the campaign, the difference being that a higher crossed-out price now appears, which, according to the reporter, was never actually charged. Another example: a **laptop that sold for €299** appeared during the campaign at €379.

Discounts are also replaced by financing. A classic: **12 months interest-free**, a formula a large department store chain has offered cardholders for years. This is not a lower price, but a more comfortable payment method. The line between the two has blurred until it disappeared.

Then there is the trendy formula, repeated in online stores and services: "we have deals every day, so we don't have sales." A **€5 discount on purchases over €300** summarizes quite well the generosity of some platforms.

Where are there actual discounts this Black Friday?

Money hasn't disappeared; it has concentrated in unwanted stock. Clothing, footwear, and home textiles—blankets, towels—make up the bulk of real sales. A €40 speaker was found for €8. A USB cable sold for €4 costs double outside the campaign. Among the most common items are branded sneakers: those recently seen for €29 or less, such as New Balance or Adidas, are now scarce.

In consoles, the reduction exists and is measurable: the Xbox Series S appears at **€220** in some department stores. In mobile phones, a mid-range model has been seen at €300. Pure electronics, however, go their own way and do not drop in price.

The category balance provided by one participant sums up three figures separated by chasms: a **40%** discount in electronics stores, **50%** on the major Chinese platform, and up to **80%** in furniture. It is the same person who admits buying only during these weeks because prices multiply the rest of the year.

The fiscal trick that changes the equation: shopping VAT-free in the Canary Islands

Where savings stop being an illusion, according to one participant, is in the Canary Islands, a territory with its own tax regime. According to her calculation, a cart worth **€135 drops to €109** when applying the VAT exemption; if you add the mini-game discount, a voucher, and the current promo, it ends up at **€100**. The strategy requires buying several things at once and not being in a hurry.

Outside that territory, the math works out worse. One participant's conclusion: for non-urgent items, it is better to wait for September, November, December, and January, the only months with serious discounts. Spring and summer are seasons of untouchable prices, and that hurts especially for clothing and footwear.

Second-hand with a new label: the refurbished business

Refurbished products have stopped being bargains. For critics, a product that has passed through technical service is sold with a **20% or 25%** discount off the new price, when it is, at best, a used and repaired item. The criticism is strong among those who remember when second-hand prices dropped by half. Some claim that in buy-sell chains, devices go on sale with dirt intact, without prior inspection, and that the word "refurbished" merely masks the origin.

Why does Black Friday exist and why does it no longer make sense in Spain?

According to one forum user, the origin is American and made sense. The day after Thanksgiving—the so-called Black Friday, because, according to this account, stores couldn't even cover their electricity bills—discounts were launched to boost consumption, with people on holiday and Christmas around the corner. For several participants, outside that calendar the campaign never made much sense, and within it, it hasn't for a long time.

The domestic version arrived as an imported trend and is now deflating. In previous years, there were deals in all stores and full streets. This year, according to the thread, some shops repeat that permanent discounts make the campaign unnecessary, and the date has stretched over weeks to overlap with Cyber Monday.

With less margin, prices already adjusted throughout the year, and consumers who have learned to distinguish the crossed-out price from the real one, the numbers don't add up. If there truly is no margin left, it doesn't explain why the sales discussed are concentrated in clothing and furniture, where the crossed-out price does drop. Numbers are missing, and nobody provides them.