What to know about the Black Friday sales in Australia for 2023

The Black Friday and Cyber Weekend sales are almost upon us.

The end of 2023 is swiftly approaching and if you’re anything like me, you haven’t started your Christmas shopping (despite running around on Christmas Eve last year buying last-minute gifts, promising myself I’d be more organised next year). 

Aside from saving yourself a bunch of stress, a good reason to get your Christmas shopping done early is the Black Friday sales, which will help you cut down your spending exponentially, without skimping on gifts. 

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Or maybe you’ve had your eye on something for yourself but haven’t been able to justify the price tag, in which case you may have a good excuse to splurge come next month when the discount hits. 

Everyone loves a good bargain, and alongside the End of Financial Year and Boxing Day sales, Black Friday and Cyber Weekend are of the best times of year to get your shopping done. So, with one of the biggest annual sales approaching, here’s everything you need to know about Black Friday sales in Australia for 2023 so you can go in prepared. 

Why is it called Black Friday?

Black Friday originated in the United States and falls on the day following Thanksgiving. Police first coined the term Black Friday sometime during the 1960s to describe the chaos caused by people flocking to shops the day after Thanksgiving, which would lead to traffic jams, shoplifting and sometimes violence. 

Black Friday is what many people consider to be the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Once Thanksgiving is over and done with, many shoppers waste no time in preparing for the next major holiday and the tradition of gift-giving that goes with it. It wasn’t until the 1980s that retailers began to really embrace Black Friday by encouraging shoppers with big discounts and adopting the term Black Friday for these sales. 

When do Black Friday sales start?

The Black Friday 2023 sales land on Friday, November 24 in Australia, though you can expect to see some sales starting early and others extending across the weekend or to the Monday of the following week for what’s now known as the Cyber Weekend sales or Cyber Monday.

The Cyber sales signify the increasing popularity of shopping online rather than in-store, as well as helping to prevent the kind of chaotic mass shopping events that birthed the term Black Friday in the first place.

What’s the big deal about Black Friday?

Not only are Black Friday sales great for consumers looking to snatch a bargain, especially in the lead-up to Christmas, but the sales are hugely beneficial for retailers and the economy – which is probably why Australia followed America in offering the annual sales, despite the fact that we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving here. 

In fact, the Australian Bureau of Statistics recorded a 5.8 per cent rise in spending last November, compared to November in the previous year, while online shopping increased by 22.8 per cent, in big part due to Black Friday and Cyber Weekend sales. 

Of course, the option to access the sales online during the pandemic was hugely helpful for stores that struggled due to the lack of in-store shopping caused by the nationwide lockdowns. While Boxing Day was consistently Australia’s biggest day for retail in the past, the Black Friday and Cyber Weekend sales have now grown to rival the day after Christmas for the most popular spending period of the year. 

What stores are having Black Friday sales in Australia?

Most brands are keeping their Black Friday 2023 sales under wraps for now, but there are a select few that have already announced some incredible deals for seasoned shoppers ahead of the busy holiday season. See below a roundup of our favourite offerings:

• Adidas: Up to 50 per cent off selected items.
• Asos: Up to 70 per cent off sitewide.
• Calvin Klein: Buy two, get 40 per cent off.
• Country Road: Up to 50 per cent off selected styles.
• Dyson: Up to $500 off selected Dyson appliances.
• Mac Cosmetics: Up to 20 per cent off selected shades and kits.
• Net-A-Porter: 25 per cent off selected items.
• Nike: Up to 50 per cent off shoes and sportswear.
• Sephora: Up to 50 per cent off sale.

If you’re a brand planning your own Black Friday sales this year, we will be curating the best at Fashion Journal’s Sales page and across our newsletter. You can advertise your sale with us by heading here, clicking ‘Post a Sale’ in the top right and following the prompts.