Plenty of brands will be sending crazy discount codes to your inbox this week, but we won't be one of them!
For the fourth year running, we will be shunning Black Friday and celebrating Green Friday 2023 by preventing 10 plastic bottles reaching the ocean via a donation to Plastic Bank, for every order placed 20th - 27th November 2023.
Who are Plastic Bank?
Plastic Bank are a social enterprise leading the Social Recycling movement to stop ocean plastic and end poverty.
They empower communities living in vulnerable areas to collect ocean-bound plastic waste and exchange it as currency for income and life-improving benefits.
The Problem with Black Friday
We’ve written before about why we don’t offer Black Friday discounts, and this year we feel more strongly about it than ever.
Let us start by saying that we understand this may be a sensitive topic - inflation is still out of control and many people are still struggling with the cost of living and paying for the essentials every day. Of course it makes sense to buy the things you already want or need over Black Friday when their price is at the lowest, and I’m always envious of those who are organised enough to get ahead on your Christmas shipping whilst the sales are on!
That’s not what the businesses pushing Black Friday want you to do.
They’re desperate to convince you that you need a different outfit every time you leave the house in December. They want you to think that your happiness depends on buying the latest gadget because your current one (which works fine) is now a year old - it doesn’t matter to them whether it ends up in landfill and you end up with buyer’s remorse once they’ve got your cash in their pocket.
If you were planning on buying a £100 dress and you get it for £50 on Black Friday, you’ve just saved £50. If you weren’t planning on buying anything but were tempted into buying the £50 dress, you’ve just wasted £50
Black Friday is still a growing trend. Salesforce reported that 2022 global online sales hit an all-time high of $281 billion, up 2% compared to 2021 but it’s estimated that 80% of items, and their plastic packaging are wasted and end up in landfill after only a couple of uses.
It’s a mind-boggling amount of waste; a waste of money, a waste of road-miles and a disgusting waste of perfectly good products going to landfill because they were never really wanted or needed in the first place.
Greenly estimates that the carbon footprint of clothing alone sold in Black Friday sales was around 33,012 tonnes of tCO2e, which is 72% higher than a normal day (19,325 tCO2e). To put it into context, that’s the annual carbon footprint of 2,800 Brits.
How can you have an ethical Black Friday?
Whether you want to make the most of the Black Friday discounts or avoid it altogether, our tips will help you enjoy an ethical Black Friday.
Shop mindfully
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Take advantage of deals on things you already wanted or needed to grab yourself a bargain, but consider your purchases and don’t buy things you’ll never use just because they’re discounted
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Consider gifting experiences over things. Vouchers for an experience or day out is a great gift, with much less waste than clothes, toys and electronics.
Shop with and support ethical brands, especially those offering Green Friday promotions - the higher the demand, the more likely the bigger brands are to follow suit!
Avoid it altogether
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If you are able to, consider making a donation to a conservation charity such as The Woodland Trust or The Wildlife Trusts
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Get outside and spend time in nature
Raise awareness with family and friends about the impact of over consumption on Black Friday and encourage them to avoid it where possible
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