mall

Friday November 27, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday November 27, 2020

Black Friday takes on ‘existential moral dimension’ amid pandemic

One of the biggest shopping days of the year is here, just as public health officials impose tighter restrictions in an effort to slow the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The confluence of Black Friday and rising COVID-19 cases has added what experts are calling an “existential moral dimension” to a retail event that has gradually become partof the holiday shopping season in Canada and a crucial sales vehicle for businesses.

November 25, 2011

Black Friday, famous for its pre-dawn lineups and hordes of bargain hunters, has increasingly eclipsed Boxing Day as the country’s biggest Christmas shopping event. Yet those wall-to-wall crowds are exactly what makes the shopping spree a potential health hazard in the time of a global pandemic.

“We’re seeing Black Friday fall at a particularly inopportune time in the pattern of infections,” says Tandy Thomas, an associate professor in the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University.

“There’s a lot more moral complexity to Black Friday this year than we’ve ever seen before.”

Critics have long denounced the rampant consumerism of Black Friday, an event that traces its origins to post-Thanksgiving sales in the United States.

However, retailers rely on holiday sales in general — and Black Friday in particular — to survive the slower winter months. 

May 9, 2020

“It’s the No. 1 day for a lot of retailers in Canada,” says retail analyst Bruce Winder. “It’s literally make-it-or-break-it time for many.”

This year, the Black Friday debate has devolved into “virtuous versus sinful,” says Markus Giesler, associate professor of marketing at York University’s Schulich School of Business.

“Black Friday has been reimagined through the lens of the pandemic along moralistic lines,” he says. “There’s an existential moral dimension to Black Friday this year that has amplified the usual debate.” 

Whereas previous concerns over Black Friday sales hinged on the ethics of an event in which consumers are pitted against one another in a scramble to get a discounted big-ticket item, sometimes resulting in chaos and violence, the issue now is whether in-store shopping will become a potential super-spreader retail event.

Retailers have acknowledged the risk and encouraged customers to shop early this year. Big box stores, which often attract throngs of people on Black Friday, started promotions as early as October.

Life in a Pandemic

Yet despite the online deals, analysts expect some people will still show up in-person on Friday in the hopes of snagging a doorbuster deal.

It’s the thrill of a good find in-store, versus the more transactional and utilitarian nature of online shopping, he says.

“There’s probably still going to be an awkward pandemonium in some stores with lineups and crowds,” Giesler adds. 

“Overall, it should be a little more subdued, but there will still be some deal-prone consumption. I expect we’ll still see some door crashing.” (Times-Colonist) https://www.timescolonist.com/black-friday-takes-on-existential-moral-dimension-amid-pandemic-1.24245971

 

Friday December 23, 2011

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator - Friday December 23, 2011 The Last-Minute Club According to the BMO Holiday Spending Survey, fewer Canadians are waiting until the last minute to cross names off of their holiday shopping list, with the majority planning their shopping weeks or months in advance (44 per cent and 37 per cent respectively). However, one-in-ten (11 per cent) still don't begin their holiday shopping until the last minute, leaving themselves only a few days to wrap up their gift giving. "With Canadian families balancing busier schedules more than ever before, it's no surprise that a few shoppers will be rushing around at the last-minute. However, this last-minute rush can often cause people to make impulse decisions and sometimes over-spend extend themselves on gift buying," said Su McVey, Vice President, BMO Bank of Montreal. "Planning ahead and establishing a budget early on to cap and track holiday spending can help avoid last-minute spending pitfalls." Ms. McVey added that online banking features, including tools such as BMO MoneyLogic(TM), allow Canadians to set spending limits and get immediate insights into whether or not they are staying on track. So as Canada's last-minute shoppers rush to cross names off their shopping lists, BMO Bank of Montreal offers the following Do's and Don'ts for the frantic, time-crunched holiday shopper: Don't Panic - You still have time to get everything done. Keep your shopping list handy at all times and try to pick up one or two items when you can - either during your lunch hour or after work. A call ahead to the retailer can confirm whether or not your item is in stock. Ask them to hold it for you so you can get in and out of the store quickly. (Source: Marketwatch) Christmas, shopping, parking, mall, consumers, commerce, shoppers, eve

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday December 23, 2011

The Last-Minute Club

According to the BMO Holiday Spending Survey, fewer Canadians are waiting until the last minute to cross names off of their holiday shopping list, with the majority planning their shopping weeks or months in advance (44 per cent and 37 per cent respectively).
However, one-in-ten (11 per cent) still don’t begin their holiday shopping until the last minute, leaving themselves only a few days to wrap up their gift giving.

“With Canadian families balancing busier schedules more than ever before, it’s no surprise that a few shoppers will be rushing around at the last-minute. However, this last-minute rush can often cause people to make impulse decisions and sometimes over-spend extend themselves on gift buying,” said Su McVey, Vice President, BMO Bank of Montreal. “Planning ahead and establishing a budget early on to cap and track holiday spending can help avoid last-minute spending pitfalls.”

Ms. McVey added that online banking features, including tools such as BMO MoneyLogic(TM), allow Canadians to set spending limits and get immediate insights into whether or not they are staying on track.

So as Canada’s last-minute shoppers rush to cross names off their shopping lists, BMO Bank of Montreal offers the following Do’s and Don’ts for the frantic, time-crunched holiday shopper:

Don’t Panic – You still have time to get everything done. Keep your shopping list handy at all times and try to pick up one or two items when you can – either during your lunch hour or after work. A call ahead to the retailer can confirm whether or not your item is in stock. Ask them to hold it for you so you can get in and out of the store quickly. (Source: Marketwatch)

 

Thursday July 23, 2009

 

The other day every media outlet carried a list of a bunch of places vying for the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. It provided a nice diversion from the usual negative stuff happening in the world, but in particular filled a gaping hole that comes with the lack of news in the depths of the northern hemisphere’s summer.

So I thought I’d follow up the trivial fodder with my own. Old guys who dye their hair… it sure feels good to get that burning issue off my back.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday July 23, 2009

The best of a wonder-full world

The world’s most impressive tides. The highest waterfall on Earth. The tallest mountain in Africa.

A group called the New 7 Wonders has come up with a contest in which people can vote for the “new seven wonders of nature.”

The choices can be made over the next year-and-a-half from a list of 28 finalists, including the Bay of Fundy in Canada, Angel Falls in Venezuela and Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.

The winning seven spots will be announced in 2011.

Many of the 28 finalists announced yesterday are traditional picks, such as the Grand Canyon, the Great Barrier Reef and the Amazon rainforest. But there are also a couple of lesser-known spots that might send folks scurrying for their atlases, including the Bu Tinah Shoals of the United Arab Emirates, the Mud Volcanoes of Azerbaijan and Lebanon’s Jeita Grotto.

Niagara Falls would be a no-brainer in many people’s eyes, but it didn’t make the cut because folks in the state of New York apparently didn’t want to spend any money to promote the cause. (One would have thought they could find money in President Obama’s bailout plan, but perhaps not).

Swiss adventurer Bernard Weber, who started the New 7 Wonders group, says he expects a billion people will vote online and over the telephone in months to come.

Folks around the world came up with an initial list of 261 natural landmarks. That was pared to 77 top vote-getters, and a panel of experts whittled that down to the 28 finalists, using criteria such as geographical balance (you can’t have Canada hogging everything), diversity and the importance to human life. (Source: Toronto Star)