Course:VANT149/2020/Capstone/Arts/Team41

Biographies

==== Fankel Wang ====

Fankel Wang

I am a lazy otaku who is addicted to online shopping due to its convenience and cheaper price. I experience so many times of impulsive shopping, which does not please me but leads to useless waste occupying my room. Additionally, I suffer from Black Friday’s consumption annually, since numerous kinds of great discounts on that day incite me to buy items exceeding my needs. I purchase them not for my demand but for their attractive price.

Domenica Romero:

Domenica Romero

I am a very energetic Bolivian. I love to eat and especially I love shopping. Being energetic sometimes leads me to be compulsive, in general with many things but mainly with unnecessary purchases. It costs me a lot to save money because every time I save some money, I spend it on food or things/items/clothes that I do not need. About three times a year, my country Bolivia holds several forms of Black Friday where they say that they are good discounts but in reality, there are no good discounts. The funny thing is that every year I fall into the "Black Friday" trap in my country buying everything which I do not need.

Anna Karolina Atehortua:

Anna Karolina Atehortua

I’m 18 years old, originally I come from Baku, Azerbaijan. I’m a huge fan of cooking and shopping. In my home country, we do not have a shopping festival such as Black Friday, however, since I have lived in various parts of the world including the Middle East and Africa I had a chance to experience various local shopping festivals. I got particularly interested in Black Friday consumer behaviour because from the time I moved to Canada I myself engaged in such an event. Thus I thought it would be interesting to explore how others behave at such an event. The study will allow a self-reflection on current consumer behaviour, and potentially influence a shift into sustainable purchasing behaviour.

Alora Huang

Alora Huang

I am Alora Huang coming from China. In my country, the growth of e-commerce and express delivery has spurred a frenzy of online shopping which even creates a special online ‘Black Friday’ on November 11th. For myself, I really engage in browsing the shopping website for hours to find some cute gadgets, especially on Black Friday. However, for clothes and expensive things, I’d prefer to buy them in the physical shops since there may exist a difference between photos and objects. Fortunately, Black Friday provides me with a chance to satisfy both my consumption and saving needs.

Chris Sang

Hi everyone, here is Chris who likes a novel shopping experience. I seldom shopping just for fulfilling necessities, instead, I regard it's an approach for entertainment no matter it's e-shopping or wander around in the store. Isn't it an enjoyment just browser through delicate items or hustle around in exquisite boutiques? When I purchase the product I am more into the experience rather than consider what is it. Therefore, I am particularly interested in the motivation behind the Black Friday, that if people are intrinsically driven and tempted by the discounts or they are attracted extrinsically by their friends as well as commercials. ====

Summary of the research

Black Friday is a popular shopping concept due to its mass consumption and the enormous trade volume. Most western customers get involved in this festival shopping. Companies set attractive prices for the shoppers, so they could buy more items.

• 

Abstract

• According to the Timsit, the sale on Black Friday and its relevant derivatives, including transportation and packaging, lead to extra burden on the environment, which challenges the endurance of the environment (2019).
• Through an empirical exploration, the study will analyze whether the attractive discounted prices can disturb the shopping patterns of customers, including buying behaviours and attitudes and awareness of sustainability. Our research uses the interview with participants to collect the shopping patterns and Black Friday experiences of individuals.

The research team interviewed approximately 8 participants via Zoom/ Wechat

• Participants demographics: international students, 18 years old and above, Participated in the Black Friday shopping last year.
• During the interview, 8 questions per participant were asked, including:
• Identity information
• Comparing between regular shopping patterns and hyper-consumption on the Black Friday
• Stating economic condition
• Knowledge about environmental sustainability.
• Each interview duration was from 10 to 20 minutes, and each interview was transcripted and recorded.
• For data analysis, the research team compared participants’ transcripts via thematic analysis, coding statements by Apriori codebook--sustainability in shopping. Sub-codes included:

• shopping preference for regular shopping behavior
• psychological motivation for the Black Friday shopping
• individual reflection on the environment and shopping
• financial integrity in terms of purchasing

• Based on the codes, common subversive themes were concluded:

• Psychological drives underlie the shopping behavior
• The group effect on The Black Friday Shopping
• Environmental stewardship and economic sustainability.

Results

The results of the data collection were divided into three common themes:

• Psychological drives underlie the shopping behavior
• The group effect on The Black Friday Shopping
• Environmental stewardship and economic sustainability.

Based on the themes 4 sub-codes were utilized to narrow down the analysis:

Generally, the results utilized from the thematic analysis, convey that all of our participants engage in the Shopping Festival. Compared to regular shopping habits, most of them reveal the unique shopping pattern on Black Friday:

• they will purchase more diverse items which may even exceed their actual demand

• Quote from Interviewee #1: “ I always buy something that I never use it, because the price is lower than normal.”
• Quote from Interviewee #3: “Usually I do shopping for pleasure I think, because other people would like to buy many things, many items. So I think aaa I should join them like to be a part of them [laughing]”

• The shopping channel may vary between online and physical shopping
• Quote from Interviewee #2: “ I usually shop for Black Friday online.”

      Psychological instincts are the main drives for Black Friday Shopping:

• All of the participants mention the thrill of spending money on Black Friday shopping.

• Quote from Interviewee #1: “ I prefer to shop for getting pleasure,”
• Quote from Interviewee #2: “.I usually buy things that I get pleasure from.”

• The ultra-low discounts on Black Friday trigger their ‘saving ’mind.
• Slight awareness of sustainability does not trigger the change in the Black Friday Shopping behaviours:

• Quote from Interviewee #1: “I bought a lot of items that I never use during Black Friday, so I think that is waste.”

• The participants acknowledged the need for financial integrity, however do not necessarily sustain it:

• Quote from Interviewee #2: “Yes I definitely spend more than I prefer on Black Friday.”

      Lastly In terms of sustainability, participants focus more on  environmental sustainability rather than economics.

• Quote from Interviewee #2: “ I think I should look more into slow fashion brands that are more sensitive to sustainability as compared to always having to keep up with quick but temporary trends.”
• Quote from Interviewee #3: “ sustainable behaviour [pause] mm not too much actually, but I would like to describe it as rational shopping.”

Basically, they all have their personal perspective for environment sustainability and about relevant eco-friendly actions such as:

• rational consumption
• extended the time of usage
• develop positive consumption habits, like no use of plastic bags

Discussion:

 Recent research indicates that although people's interest in buying sustainable products has risen, the problem of the high demand of consumerism still prevents people from practicing it on a larger scale (Vermeir & Verbeke, 2006). Based on the results, participants would behave unconventionally compared to their regular shopping behaviors. That is, people who only buy essentials in everyday shopping might purchase several unneeded products on Black Friday because they tend to be inspired by external factors such as friends’ recommendation and advertising’s persuasion. Moreover, it became evident that individuals have a general idea of the relationship between Black Friday and Sustainability, only in terms of environmental sustainability. The majority ignored the potential impact on economic sustainability. Admittedly it’s a distinct tendency for consumers to overspend a bit on Black Friday. The retailers establish multichannel offers online and offline, the demand for goods increases, inevitably increasing the economic spendings of households (Swiley & Goldsmith, 2013) Still, according to diversified cultural values and financial wellness, some individuals maintain consciousness while purchasing products and select necessary items (Boyd Thomas & Peters, 2011).

Nevertheless, the personal characteristics of individuals can also act as a driving force for consumer behaviour. The research done by Vermeir and Verbeke concluded that personal characteristic is proportional to it despite which has no apparent correlation to consumer behaviour (2006). Therefore, in order to enhance the proportion of eco-friendly and sustainable consumption, the gap between attitude and action should be narrowed down while raising awareness through motivations.

The three most essential takeaway messages of our research that we want our audience to acknowledge are:

• Awareness of sustainability and sustainable consumption behaviour and the impacts of mass consumption on our environment.

• By having a brief awareness of sustainable consumption individuals can change their attitudes and behaviours and resist the temptation of the discounts and only buy what is truly necessary for them.

• Lastly, individuals will be able to acknowledge the amount of money they spend during the Black Friday and reflect on their finances and the need for mass consumption.

References:

        Boyd Thomas, J., & Peters, C. (2011). An exploratory investigation of black friday consumption rituals. International Journal of Retail &

                  Distribution Management, 39(7),  522-537. doi:10.1108/09590551111144905

       Swilley, E., & Goldsmith, R. E. (2013). Black Friday and cyber Monday: Understanding consumer intentions on two major shopping days.

                 Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 20(1), 43-50. doi:10.1016/j.jretconser.2012.10.003

Vermeir, I., & Verbeke, W. (2006). Sustainable food consumption: Exploring the consumer “Attitude – behavioral intention” gap. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, 19(2), 169-194. doi:10.1007/s10806-005-5485-3 http://udspace.udel.edu/handle/19716/11551

Timsit, A. (2019, November 29). Black Friday's environmental cost is sparking worldwide protests. Retrieved from https://qz.com/1758551/black-fridays-environmental-cost-leads-to-worldwide-protests/