'I'm not exactly sure how it began, but I know it's time to shop," Tu Bo, a 37-year-old research fellow at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, told Beijing Review. He was contemplating the magnetic pull of Black Friday, the shopping phenomenon that grips the U.S. each year. On November 24, like countless others, Tu found himself irresistibly drawn into the online shopping frenzy, spending around $400 without setting foot outside his home. "It's more than just the lure of discounts," Tu confided. "It's the appeal of avoiding the bustling mall crowds that really drives me to embrace online shopping."

Tu's experience is a microcosm of a much larger phenomenon. As reported by Adobe Analytics, a Web analytics platform, the recent Black Friday was marked by a surge in online consumer spending, with figures in the United States soaring to an astonishing $9.8 billion on Black Friday alone.

From Black Friday to Cyber Monday

Black Friday is the fourth Friday in November, which fell on November 24 this year. It marks the unofficial commencement of the Christmas shopping season in the United States. In these early hours, following the calm of Thanksgiving Day, a federal and state holiday in the U.S. held on the fourth Thursday of November, throngs of shoppers converge upon major stores, their eyes set on the prices of discounted treasures.

The moniker "Black Friday" finds its roots in 1960s Philadelphia and is a term coined by the city's police, overwhelmed by the chaotic streets filled with post-Thanksgiving shoppers and football game crowds. Despite the efforts of major department stores to rebrand it as "Big Friday," the somewhat ominous name stubbornly stuck.

Since the 1980s, Black Friday has become an annual spectacle. Year after year, many people begin their vigil on Thursday evening, camping outside malls and retail outlets. They create impenetrable human barricades at the entrances, all for the chance to be the first to burst through the doors. And almost every year, the frenzy in some locations spills over into stampedes and brawls, a testament to the American fervor for this shopping holiday.

For those who don't want to queue outside stores, online Black Friday promotions often start at the same time as in-store sales, or even earlier. Most major online stores release their Black Friday advertisements, coupons and deals online in advance, giving consumers time to learn about the sales and plan their purchases.

This led to the birth of Cyber Monday. Initially, it was a term used to describe the surge in online shopping on the first Monday after Thanksgiving. Over time, it evolved into a full-fledged shopping festival, as retailers saw an opportunity to attract a different segment of consumers who preferred the digital domain for their holiday purchases.

Observing the transformation of shopping holidays over time reveals an intriguing trend: The once brief and frenetic holiday shopping season has been gradually increasing in duration. This shift was highlighted in a New York Times report dated November 24, where Jeffrey Gennette, Chairman and CEO of Macy's—a prominent U.S. department store chain—was quoted as telling investors competition had shifted to offering deals prior to Black Friday. "We're in the midst of that along with our competitors," he said, explaining the company's decision to increase the duration of its Black Friday promotions.

Global evolution of Black Friday

The digital revolution has catapulted Black Friday from a national shopping spree in the U.S. to a global spectacle, thanks to the proliferation of online shopping. This transformation has not just widened the consumer base but also intensified the competitive landscape in the retail sector.

Back in November 2014, online retail platform Amazon marked its territory in China by inaugurating its first Black Friday shopping festival. This bold move opened doors for Chinese consumers to revel in the same deals that were once exclusive to American shoppers, all through Amazon China's overseas purchase store.

In a parallel development, Alibaba, a giant of Chinese e-commerce, embraced the Black Friday phenomenon. The company announced a strategic alliance with four major U.S. department stores, launching the overseas "direct purchase" service via Alipay. This initiative provided Chinese consumers with an integrated international shopping experience, from payment to logistics, effectively melding Eastern and Western retail cultures.

However, the retail landscape is currently undergoing seismic shifts. As a behemoth with a presence in over 100 countries, Amazon is now contending with a new breed of competition, particularly from efficient Chinese platforms renowned for their low pricing strategies. This year's Black Friday reflected these changing tides in global e-commerce, with the U.S. market—a key territory for Amazon and the world's second largest e-commerce arena—becoming a battleground.

Emerging platforms like SHEIN, Temu, TikTok Shop and AliExpress, labeled as the "four little dragons of cross-border e-commerce" by many Chinese sellers, are carving out their space in the global market. Temu, particularly known for its rock-bottom pricing, was launched in the U.S. in September 2022 with the promise of discounts of up to 90 percent. Its business model requires merchants to ship goods only to a domestic warehouse and declare supply prices. The platform is then responsible for subsequent operations, deployment and pricing. The model is reshaping market dynamics, as it favors the manufacturers who can afford to offer the lowest prices.

This competitive pressure is tangible. A December 2022 survey by Capterra, a prominent online platform that features validated user reviews, uncovered a striking trend: An overwhelming 99 percent of small and medium-sized retailers on Amazon are planning to expand their sales to other e-commerce marketplaces in 2023. This figure is evidence of a growing awareness among sellers of the need to diversify their online presence in response to the changing market dynamics. Further illustrating this shift, a report from ChannelX World, a key resource for merchants and retailers, highlights a notable decline in Amazon's user engagement. Since April, the e-commerce giant has seen its daily user numbers drastically fall from an average of 54 million to 46 million.

Data from China's Ministry of Commerce underscores the rising significance of Chinese cross-border e-commerce, which grew from 1 percent of China's goods trade in 2015 to 5 percent in 2022. The import and export volume through this medium reached a formidable 1.7 trillion yuan (about $239 billion) from January to September this year, a 14.4 percent year-on-year increase. This shift underscores China's evolving role in global trade, establishing it as a key player with a growing cross-border e-commerce ecosystem that connects it with partners worldwide.

The Global Consumer Insights Pulse Survey conducted by professional services firm PwC, published in February, revealed a shift in global consumer spending habits. Faced with rising living costs, 69 percent of consumers are cutting back on non-essential spending. Furthermore, about 90 percent have started adopting cost-saving measures to better manage their finances, indicating a broader trend of cautious spending amid economic changes. Consumers' embrace of Chinese cross-border platforms that focuses on low prices, aligns with this trend.

In this rapidly changing retail environment, adaptability and innovation will be key. However, one thing is certain—the spirit of Black Friday, with its promise of deals and excitement, will continue to captivate consumers and retailers around the world. 

Copyedited by G.P. Wilson

Comments to zhaowei@cicgamericas.com