The biggest shopping event of the year – Black Friday – will take place in Belgium this week, heralding the end-of-year season. Bargain hunters are already scouring for the best deals, but consumers have been warned to remain vigilant.
This Friday is all about discounts and, increasingly, overconsumption. Black Friday initially became an integral part of the Thanksgiving celebrations in the United States, marking the start of the Christmas shopping season, but the frenzy soon spread to Europe.
The phenomenon also recently started gaining traction in Belgium, with many shops and brands across the country advertising their 'unmissable deals'. But the country is now cracking down on increasingly misrepresented discounts.
"The legislation has become stricter: if a company indicates that it is giving a percentage discount now, they have to refer to the 'reference price' on which the discount is calculated, which is the lowest price at which the product was put up on sale in the past 30 days, without discount," Laura Clays, spokesperson for consumer rights organisation Test Achats, told The Brussels Times.
What to be wary of
Clays explained that, while this can sometimes be difficult to check, consumers can ensure that the crossed-out price does not say 'recommended price'.
"Because the recommended retail price is the price a manufacturer gives with its product, to give resellers an indication of how much they can sell it for. However, many resellers will have already put the product on sale at a lower price, meaning they are not abiding by this new reference price rule," she said.
Other companies, such as retail chain Exellent, try to find other loopholes in the legislation by not crossing out the price, meaning there is no explicit mention of discounting. "It simply adds what the recommended retail price is and then presents a cheaper price in red making it look to the consumer like this is a discount," Clays said.
The incorrect indication of the price by Exellent compared to the deal on Krefel's website.
"And those who then think they have bagged a good deal are done for because at Krefel, the product is even cheaper, where the price is correctly presented if we assume that the lowest price was indeed at €1,354 for the past 30 days."
Test Achats also advises checking whether online shops are reliable, for instance by checking the mandatory information such as a physical address or a company number. Reviews from other customers can also help identify whether it is legitimate.
"Most webshops do play by the rules, but never forget to compare: don't jump on the first best deal," Clays concluded.
Food safety agency FAVV, meanwhile, has warned customers that not all dietary supplements for sale online are safe in the run-up to Black Friday. The agency stated that one in two dietary supplements sent via postal parcels was found to be non-compliant in an analysis carried out in collaboration with Belgian customs.
"For example, medicinal substances such as sildenafil and sibutramine were found, but supplements are not allowed by law to contain medicinal substances." It is urging consumers to look into whether a particular product is on the Public Health Ministry's list of known food supplements when buying online. "If the promised effect is too good to be true, it probably is."
'Don't consume for the sake of consuming'
Beyond the scams, there are global ecological and ethical consequences of Black Friday, resulting in more retailers opting for a more sustainable approach.
"We always advise people not to just buy at random, but to really consider what they need and then buy that with a Black Friday discount if they think it is a good deal," Clays said. "But don't consume for the sake of consuming: it isn't good for the environment or your wallet."
Several Belgian chains such as Dille & Kamille and Xandres have once again confirmed that they will not participate in Black Friday this year. Instead, they will keep their doors and online shop closed to encourage customers to think about their consumption habits.
"On the day that consumers worldwide are urged to buy, we choose to close the doors of all our shops in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany and online on 24 November 2023," Dille & Kamille noted on its website.
This year, the city of Brussels is also again launching its Local Friday initiative together with 29 traders such as La Boite à Musique, Boutique Japan, Sauvage Décor and Natacha Cadonici, putting the focus on local products for a week.
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Staff members at certain retailers are also using the occasion to take a stand. For example, employees of e-commerce company Amazon are again planning strikes and protests in more than 30 countries on Black Friday, the campaign group Progressive International confirmed.
The group's spokesperson, David Adler, argued that Amazon's recently published financial results prove that the company can better compensate its staff and needs to negotiate with unions to improve working conditions.
