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As it happenedended
6 years ago

Black Friday as it happened: Deals, news and offers from across the web

Aatif Sulleyman
Thursday 23 November 2017 08:06 EST
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What is Black Friday?

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Black Friday 2017 is expected to be the busiest shopping event of the year. Though sales were supposed to kick off on 24 November, the day after Thanksgiving 2017, major retailers sent their Black Friday deals live early this year.

It's a great time to purchase all manner of products, such as laptops, TVs, smartphones, furniture, clothes and even alcohol.

Amazon Black Friday Pop Up Home Experience

There have been a staggering number of offers to choose from and, as ever, consumers have had to move quickly to get their hands on them.

As we’ve learned from previous Black Fridays, consumers can get fiercely competitive, with in-store fights sadly not uncommon. Fortunately, it can be much easier to find your bargains online.

However, while many Black Friday deals are genuinely great, others aren't.

After all, as well as being the best time of the year to pick up bargains and get your Christmas shopping out of the way, Black Friday is also the best time for retailers to get rid of their unwanted stock and make offers look better than they really are.

Here are the best Black Friday 2017 deals we spotted.

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7 years ago

John Lewis, by the way, is offering a price match on all competitors, which is handy if you’d rather get all of your shopping done in one place. Like Amazon, it always goes big on Black Friday, as you can see from its deals page

Andrew Griffin24 November 2017 14:15
7 years ago

A 19-year-old has been shot outside a mall ahead of Black Friday according to US reports, and has suffered life-threatening injuries.

The incident took place in a car park outside the Columbia Mall in Columbia, Missouri on Thursday night. It isn't yet clear if the shooting was accidental or deliberate.

Andrew Griffin24 November 2017 15:43
7 years ago

Andrew Griffin24 November 2017 15:57
7 years ago

Although Black Friday is an American import to the UK, British and American shopping habits on the day are very different.In the US many people have the day off work after the Thanksgiving holiday. This means 54% of consumers planned to shop in store and 33% online.In the UK, where people are more likely to be at work today, just 26% of consumers planned to purchase in store, and 68% online, according to a survey by Kantar."Black Friday in the UK has always been online - Amazon were the ones to bring it over originally", said Clive Black, the head of research at investment group Shore Capital.Predominantly online shopping may also be cheaper than shopping in store, according to Gary Caffell from consumer group Money Saving Expert.He pointed to an example of Sonos speakers being sold at Currys for £149 online, but £170 in store.Mr Caffell continued that shopping online has the added benefit of increased consumer protection laws which gives the shopper time to return the product if they change their mind.Dr Susan Rose, a marketing academic at Henley Business School, warns it can be "too easy" to shop Black Friday deals online, saying: "You can change from browsing to purchasing in a nanosecond."Although consumers legally could return items, "research shows that most of the time consumers just don't get round to it", she added.Caffell said overall shopping online Black Friday deals does help consumers to save money on discounted items "as long as you don't plan to buy a toothbrush and end up with a TV".

Andrew Griffin24 November 2017 16:29
7 years ago

A "police incident" is unfolding at Oxford Circus station. That's right on Oxford Street – one of the biggest shopping streets in the world. The incident is likely to be entirely unconnected to Black Friday, but comes amid one of the biggest shopping days in the world.

People are being told to avoid travelling to the Oxford Street area, and police say they are responding "as if the incident is terrorist related".

You can follow live updates on the incident here

Andrew Griffin24 November 2017 17:00
7 years ago

Oxford Circus station has now re-opened, with the Met saying, "To date police have not located any trace of any suspects, evidence of shots fired or causalities. Officers continue to work with colleagues from British Transport Police in the area of Oxford Circus."

People are still being advised to avoid the area. 

Andrew Griffin24 November 2017 17:57

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