The gift Derbyshire's local businesses really want this Black Friday

I don’t know if it was because Christmas last year didn’t have the same feel due to lockdown, or if people worried a driver shortage might deprive them of getting the perfect gift – but it definitely feels like the yuletide starting gun was fired early this year.

I know plenty of people who ticked off all the items on their Christmas gift list before Halloween.

But others have been sitting tight, hoping to cut costs by bagging a bargain this Black Friday, when traditionally on-line retailers slash prices on hot items.

But as ever: caveat emptor. There have been warnings that many of the so-called discounts on offer from big name on-line chains are anything but.

It was revealed last year by Which? that 85 percent of Black Friday product prices aren’t the cheapest they’ve ever been and just one percent were at their lowest ever price.

And whilst we all know that 27.4% of all statistics are made up, in this case it definitely pays to shop savvy.

There are undoubtably some genuine bargains to be had at this time of year, but it always pays to check the small print which may reveal that the item is only ‘discounted’ because the price had been hiked earlier in the year.

It won’t come as a surprise that Black Friday has its origins in the US of A where it falls on the day after Thanksgiving. And like a lot of things coming from across the Pond in recent years, it has triggered a bit of a backlash, with some retailers even boycotting Black Friday.

It is reported that up to 85% of smaller sellers will protest against online giants such as Amazon by closing their websites and planting trees instead.

But many small businesses simply can’t afford to turn away any sale after the desperate times they’ve struggled through lockdown.

They may also struggle to cut paper-thin profit margins any further in order to offer black Friday discounts, even if they wanted to.

Christmas is the time for giving, so let’s give some extra love to our independent businesses and shop local this Black Friday – and through the festive season.