Shopping Small Businesses on Black Friday

By Victoria Fuller

It is that glorious time of year again! When devoted shoppers literally camp outside the doors of billion dollar corporations in an attempt to save x amount of dollars on a product that they presumably don’t actually need. That's right folks, it's the day after Thanksgiving and that means one thing: Black Friday Shopping.

Now we can’t hate on consumerism too much as we literally sell a product in hopes that people will, well, consume it. What we can do though is promote mindful and sustainable shopping this holiday season! This blog is going to dive into the origin of Black Friday, how we at Cedar Planters are actively trying to encourage sustainable living, and the importance of making mindful choices when shopping this holiday season.

Black Friday has been around for decades, and although it originated in the USA it has reached global domination in the last few years thanks to the increase in online shopping.

The origin of the holiday dates back to the 1970’s when the Philadelphia Police Department deemed the Friday after Thanksgiving “Black Friday” due to the bad traffic, massive crowds, miserable weather, and overall gloomy conditions. The earliest use of the term can be dated all the way back to 1869 when plummeting gold prices caused a stock market crash!

You can read more about the origin of Black Friday in this interesting article by the Huffington Post here! Black Friday marks the Friday after the last major holiday on the US calendar before Christmas, so it has become the unofficial “start of holiday shopping season”.

Shopping sustainably is more important than ever. With climate change and excessive consumerism, it's crucial to make choices that benefit you, your finances, and the environment. That's where we can help! Want to shop on Black Friday and be eco-friendly? There are ways to get good deals while still being kind to the environment.

Since we started out two of our main focuses have been creating sustainable products and providing our customers the opportunity to grow their own food at home. Our raised garden beds and planter boxes are made with sustainably sourced Western Red Cedar (for every tree that is cut down to make our products three are planted in its place!) that is rot-resistant, food-safe, and chemical-free! Now that’s a Black Friday purchase that you can truly feel good about!

Do your research before giving into Black Friday Deals! Research if the company that you are potentially giving your hard-earned money to has sustainability, climate change, and the wellness of its customers and employees as a priority!

Everybody loves a deal, but if you are in a position to support a small business as opposed to a soulless corporation, we implore you to do so! Any company that is actively trying to make positive changes for the environment and quality of life for its customers and employees will likely allude to this somewhere on their website or social media accounts, so just do a little digging before you hit “check out”!

Together we can make a difference in the sustainability practices of small and large businesses alike! Together we can also have some absolutely beautiful raised garden beds as well...just saying!