Find great Black Friday deals in this week’s Zululand Observer

Get all your Black Friday promotions in this week’s Zululand Observer Weekender edition.

The ZO is bringing out a special Black Friday supplement, which will be a handy pull-out guide with lots of local specials to help you plan your shopping.

So make sure you grab a copy of this week’s ZO on sale tomorrow (Thursday) across Zululand.

How to survive Black Friday

Black Friday is great for money-saving deals, but it also means big crowds and a competitive shopping frenzy 100 times crazier than on pay day.

For the brave shoppers among us, here are the rules to survive Black Friday madness:

• Do your research. Find out about specials before you leave the house. Follow your favourite brands on social media to see if they have any Black Friday offers.

• Formulate a plan of action. List the items you want to buy and what shops you need to visit. Consider your priorities in relation to store locations and traffic patterns, then plan your route.

• Eat breakfast. Nothing is worse than feeling ‘hangry’ (hungry + angry) in a noisy, overcrowded space. A simple meal can help keep you calm – and will give you the energy and stamina needed to tackle the day.

• Get a babysitter. If you think you have problems with naughty or whiny kids during a normal grocery shopping trip, then you should definitely leave the kids at home on Black Friday.

• Dress for success. Give your stilettos the day off. You’ll be spending a lot of time on your feet, so wear comfortable shoes, carry a lightweight cross-body bag and stay hydrated.

• Be reasonable. Sales staff will be inundated with customer queries. You cannot expect them to dote on you. If you need assistance, keep your questions short and sweet, but try to read up on the product beforehand. Also, stores may sell out of items. Be understanding and do not demand miracles from store employees.

• Don’t push. Respect other people’s personal space, don’t step on toes or reverse without looking back first. Pushing and shoving is rude. So is shouting and swearing.

• Don’t be greedy. Be considerate of the other shoppers who are all trying to find bargains. There is no need to purchase 15 boxes of marked down breakfast cereal. Buy only your fair share.

• Get out of the way. If you’re battling to choose between the red and blue skirt, step aside and let other people past.

• Be patient. There will be long queues. Rolling your eyes, sighing and complaining about ‘slow cashiers’ will not help to speed things up.

• Wait for your turn. Jumping the queue is against the rules and will only anger all the people around you. Stand in line and wait for your turn. The same goes for ‘holding’ space for friends and family. Be considerate towards other people.

• Pay and go. Nobody wants to wait on you to count your silver coins, or ‘discover’ that you have insufficient funds in your bank account. This is also not the time to suddenly want to quickly dash back into the isles, leaving everyone in the queue waiting for you to finish your purchase.

• Be nice. A smile, ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ will make everyone’s shopping experience a more pleasant one.

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