Both Amazon-owned souq and startup noon are planning big sales this week, mirroring the traditional week of sales known in the US as ‘Black Friday’.
While somewhat of a new tradition here in the region, where it tends to be known as ‘White Friday’ or in noon’s case ‘Yellow Friday’, both online retailers are embracing the occasion.
Noon’s Yellow Friday sales runs November 20-24 and while you should probably check regularly to see what’s on offer, it is offering big discounts in a number of categories. There’s up to 50% off on phones, 50% off on laptops and 70% off on TVs and home appliances. Noon offers free delivery on orders above AED 100 and it’s offering a lowest price guarantee.
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Amazon is one of the main reasons Black Friday is now such a big thing in the US and its regional arm, souq, is embracing the occasion with aplomb. Its White Friday sale runs November 20-24 and the retailer is offering up to 70% off on ‘thousands of products from leading brands’.
In e-mails sent to customers, souq is urging them to prepare by downloading the souq app to their phones, checking all their contact information is up to date and parking any items they might want to buy in their shopping baskets in advance of the 20th. Emirates NBD and Emirates Islamic card holders can get a further 10% off if they shop with the souq app.
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All this talk of White, Yellow and Black Friday can be a little confusing. The tradition apparently dates back to the 1950s in the US and marks a day of sales to coincide with the fourth Friday of November – which also happens to be the day after Thanksgiving and the day when the US winter shopping season unofficially begins.
Over recent years, and with the growth of online retail, Black Friday has stretched out into a week long event. It has only caught on recently in the Middle East, but online retailers at least appear keen to embrace it.
