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Biggest Black Friday in history, says big 4 bank
One of Australia’s big four banks is expecting Australian retailers to experience its biggest Black Friday in history, as shoppers look to take advantage of pre-Christmas sales.
Biggest Black Friday in history, says big 4 bank
One of Australia’s big four banks is expecting Australian retailers to experience its biggest Black Friday in history, as shoppers look to take advantage of pre-Christmas sales.

Commonwealth Bank is predicting a major hike in retail customers, particularly online sales volumes as customers choose to shop digitally during the pandemic.
CBA Institutional Bank’s managing director for industrials, transport and consumer, Jake Potgieter, said some of the bank’s major retail customers are expecting sales to be even more elevated this year over the Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend, as Aussies look to spend more on retail purchases rather than on travel as a result of current travel restrictions.
“Some of our major retail clients will be extending their Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales to capitalise on increased retail spending,” Mr Potgieter said.
“By all indications, many of our clients are preparing for the largest online sales period on record.”

The data shows in recent years, many businesses experienced a significant spike in sales, with the overall amount spent online at department stores and electronic stores up 465 per cent on Black Friday 2019 and 107 per cent on Cyber Monday.
There was also a rise in the total amount spent at these physical stores – up 343 per cent on Black Friday 2019 and 89 per cent on Cyber Monday.
Clothing stores could be the big winner with the amount spent on clothing online last Black Friday lifted by 264 per cent, while the amount spent online for home furnishings and equipment rose by 202 per cent.
The 2019 uplift in sales was more than previous years and part of a rising trend of Aussie shoppers embracing the Black Friday sales, with the overall amount spent on retail goods up 35 per cent in 2018 when compared with the average amount spent in the three weeks prior.
Cyber Monday is also proving popular with Aussie shoppers, with the total amount spent on retail goods up by 25 per cent in 2019, when compared with the average amount spent in the three weeks prior.
Head of retail and diversified industries in CBA’s Business Banking division, Jerry Macey, said shoppers were taking advantage of the recent move towards pre-Christmas discounting.
“Businesses are viewing the Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend period as an opportunity for them to grow their customer base as spending patterns and behaviours change,” Mr Macey said.
“It also presents an opportunity for retailers to bring forward sales, optimise their inventory and enhance performance for the year if they manage these sales events well.”
“Many retail business customers are telling us they have experienced a move to more online sales due to the pandemic, and they expect this to be reflected in the upcoming sale period as well. To ensure they lock in sales, many retailers have even started their offers well ahead of the day itself.”
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