Why is Black Friday a Big Deal for Nigerians?

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A uniformed lady in yellow and blue wheels about 16 intertwined shopping carts from the parking lot into the shopping mall. It’s her 17th round for the day, and at each round, she wheels in more than 15 shopping carts. Before now, in a day, that could be the total number of carts she would wheel out of the parking lot. But since Justrite Superstore in Osogbo began its Black Friday sales in November, the mall has become increasingly crowded with shoppers, so there are more carts to wheel in once people pack and unload whatever they’ve shopped out of the carts to their cars in the parking lot.

At the Justrite Superstore entrance, seven security officers, unlike the usual two, vet each shopping bag as shoppers exit the store. There are cameras inside the store, but “with all these people, how many will the camera catch?” A security officer says to me. There are long lines of people waiting at checkout points, more people shopping, and more flocking into the store. Every year, the mall experiences a surge of customers during the Black Friday sales because prices on goods are slashed by half or reduced significantly.

Beyond physical shopping places with Black Friday sales every year, a lot of Nigerians also target online shopping platforms for sales because, after getting significant discounts, some deliveries are offered for free. Damilare Olasinde intentionally began targeting Black Friday sales online in 2022. As a content marketer, most of the creators he looks up to offer sales on courses and materials he wouldn’t have been able to afford on a regular day, or courses he had bought at a higher rate.

“I was planning to buy two domains this November. And I remembered there was Black Friday, so I got two domains on Namecheap. It’s actually now part of my annual plans to save for Black Friday and look for the best deals. Stuff you can only get for two, you buy like four,” Damilare says.

Since he began targeting Black Friday sales, Damilare has bought several things, including educational materials from his favourite creators, groceries and perfumes that could sustain him for a few months or the following year.

The concept of Black Friday sales became familiar to Nigerians through the popular shopping platform, Jumia. Between October and December, shoppers would scramble through the platform searching for products that are significantly discounted. With the burst of technology in the past decade, reliance on online shopping has grown, but it’s orchestrated during Black Friday.

In Pelumi Salako‘s report for Hunterbrook, Jumia’s chief supply chain officer, Richmond Carlos Otu, said the Black Friday season is “the busiest time of year.” In 2024, Jumia generated over 18% more orders during Black Friday. According to its report, Jumia “handled 5.6 million packages” during the campaign.

While Black Friday is a global trend, with inflation surging, food inflation especially biting, and the national minimum wage still lagging far behind the rising cost of living, many Nigerians see Black Friday as a strategic season to stock up, save money and access goods that would otherwise be out of reach.

Like Damilare, Funmilola targets sales every year to stock her skin care products, books and clothes. “I mostly buy my skin care at the end of the year for next year. For instance, I have about 80% of my skincare that’ll last me through 2026. I also stock up on clothes and keep them for occasions that need the dresses. Most of the clothes I rocked this year were bought last year. Even jewellery,” Funmilola says.

But the frenzy of Black Friday also comes with a major fear. Many shoppers are concerned about falling for counterfeit, expired, or low-quality products that are misrepresented as good deals. Stores push out products that are nearing expiration to sell at lower prices and clear out the log. Online platforms deliver low-quality products because there is no option to inspect the product physically. While they appreciate discovering bargains, they also worry about not regretting the purchase later.

How often do you target Black Friday deals?