Specials

Canadian searches for “Black Friday” in Google have been increasing since its first blip appeared in Google Trends six years ago.

A number of academic studies have investigated the Black Friday phenomenon. A recent study in the International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management argued that families see Black Friday as a time to come together and strengthen family ties.  The authors state:

“This study’s data clearly show that the family bonds together in the face of perceived adversity (i.e. survival in the competitive shopping environment) during Black Friday consumption rituals. Thus, Black Friday appears to be one means for multiple generations of females to bond together, reinforce relationships, and indoctrinate younger generations.”

Another study, from the Journal of Marketing Research, examined the impact of Thanksgiving dinner on shopping behaviour.  Researchers found that turkey, which contains tryptophan and increases the amount of serotonin in the brain, actually decreases impulsiveness.  This actually makes people less likely to jump at bargains.

But it doesn’t require much impulse to take advantage of Duty Free savings that amount to up to 73% in some stores.

For most Canadians, Black Friday shopping isn’t a long-standing family tradition.

Cross-border shopping just comes down to the cost of travel versus the benefit of lower prices. A recent study by economists Ambarish Chandra, Keith Head and Mariano Tappata estimated that a typical shopper requires savings of almost $30 per hour of travel time. So, for example, a six-hour round-trip journey is worth doing if it generates savings of $180 or more.

You can save this much money in a single trip to a Duty Free Canada store.  Additionally, some stores offer up to $800 in outlet savings in their region.

Retailers north of the border are offering their own versions of Black Friday sales to combat the impact of the rising Canadian dollar.  However, you’ll only escape the tax man at our Duty Free stores.  So come in and check out our specials!

[studies found in The Globe and Mail]