In the top trade celebration of the winter which includes the Black Friday (Friday November 29) and Cyber ​​Monday (Monday 2 December) businesses and consumers bet. Retailers are upbeat in anticipation of a stimulative “injection” of liquidity as mid-term sales are scrapped and consumers prepare to go bargain hunting in the weeks leading up to Christmas by taking advantage of tempting deals in the days leading up to Christmas. Black Week.

According to what he mentions speaking to the Athenian – Macedonian News Agency o Makis Savvidisvice-president of the Athens Chamber of Commerce (ESA) and vice-president of the Hellenic Electronic Commerce Association (GRECA), as every year, in the last week of November both online and physical stores will participate in the commercial celebration offering products with very big discounts. “The celebration may be foreign, but every year the institution matures in our country, as a result of which more and more discounts are offered for the benefit of the consumer,” he underlines.

At the same time, controls on the market are being intensified by the Ministry of Development in order to ensure that the offers and discounts will be real, to the benefit of the consumer. “The control of the market is a given obligation of the government which it must do constantly and not only during the Black Friday period” notes Mr. Savvidis and adds: “there are always companies that operate on the sly and try to take advantage of the great demand of days to offer products with misleading discounts”. He points out that especially for e-commerce, it is not easy to commit irregularities because the online presence of each business is public and visible. “Last year, two or three violations by large companies were found. Small businesses do not resort to such practices because they know that the fines that will be imposed on them will be devastating. Also, small businesses are customer-centric. They have very good relations with their clients and do not enter into the process of making irregularities and breaking the law,” emphasizes Mr. Savvidis.

Focusing on the consumer, he says that the problem with disposable income continues to exist and adds that “consumers’ limited disposable income is mainly spent on paying increased rents and at supermarkets, resulting in limited retail purchases. At the same time, accuracy has affected the psychology of consumers and has radically changed their buying habits.” However, as he notes, discount events such as that of Black Friday will not remain unexploited, as they will offer consumers the opportunity to “hunt” the offers on products that interest them.

Consumers are positive about purchases

But how will consumers behave in the biggest discount event of the Fall? As Thanos Mavros, EY Partner in Greece and Head of EY’s Retail Sector in Southeast Europe, explains to APE-MPE, as part of EY’s large annual research on consumer trends Future Consumer Index, Greek consumers were asked if they intend to shop on of Black Friday and Cyber ​​Monday. One in two participants (50%) responded positively, while, among them, 79% said they are postponing some purchases until these days, expecting more reduced prices and bargains.

“I think it’s a classic case where you can see the glass as ‘half empty’ or ‘half full’. On the one hand, we see that the consumer public in Greece is now familiar with the big discount events and is ready to take advantage of the opportunities. In particular, in fact, portions of the public, the willingness to buy is even higher – 65% among young people aged 18-29, and especially students (69%), but also in the 40-49 age group (54%). Also, more willing to make purchases are those who have children and, in particular, minor children (60%). On the other hand, there is also 50% who declare that they will not shop on those days. High inflation and pressures on personal income and household budgets are the obvious explanation, with affordability continuing to be a top criterion for a large proportion of consumers. However, there is also the perception among many consumers that these discount events do not necessarily bring great opportunities – or, at least, greater than those presented during the rest of the year – so they maintain a more restrained attitude” underlines Mr. Mavros.

He argues that retail and consumer goods businesses should study these data and adjust their strategies accordingly. And today they have many tools at their disposal, to be able to “touch” the different categories of consumers with personalized offers and advantageous proposals. “For example, we see global industry giants leveraging artificial intelligence by analyzing real-time data to predict demand or even tailor personalized offers based on our preferences. They can also, with the use of dynamic pricing algorithms, monitor the course of competition prices and readjust their own pricing policy in real time, reaching the consumer first with the best value for money,” he emphasizes.

As the research series, EY Future Consumer Index Greece, which has been running since 2021 in the country – and the results for this year, in December – will be officially presented in the consumer public today, many different needs, priorities and expectations coexist. “The key lies in how to offer the consumer what he wants, when he wants it, and through the channel he chooses,” says Mr. Mavros.

Tips for safe shopping

The Consumer Advocate and the European Consumer Center of Greece point out that the goal of all consumers should not only be economically advantageous, but at the same time smart and safe purchases. In this context, they advise consumers of the following:

-We pay attention to the availability of the products: Sometimes, behind a very low price hides a rather long waiting time for delivery, which may not always satisfy our immediate needs.

-We confirm the correctness and honesty of the discount price offered: Sometimes, it happens that the discounts are fictitious and deceive us. We identify and consult tools that are available online and show us over time the evolution of the prices of the products we are interested in. We also note the prices of the products before and after the application of any discounts, so that we can easily compare them afterwards and thus know if it actually exists and what our true financial benefit is.

-We prefer to process the payment by cash on delivery or electronic means, which give us the possibility to dispute an electronic transaction afterwards, if a problem arises. We avoid full payment of products by bank deposit before delivery, unless we have complete confidence in the reputation and commercial reputation of the seller.

-When buying remotely, we make sure that the merchant’s website contains all legally required identification (e.g. trade name) and contact (full postal address) information. For even greater security, we look for additional identifying information, such as registration number in the General Commercial Register and VAT number.

-In the final purchase price of the products, we include any indirect costs (e.g. cost of cash on delivery, transport, insurance, etc.), so that we have a complete picture of our real financial burden.

-We submit as soon as possible after receiving a product and, in any case, within the legal deadline of three days to the postal company that made the delivery our reservations for any obvious damages, given that they may have been caused during transport and we are entitled to compensation. We definitely contact the store of sale as soon as possible, in order to investigate the possibility that a product was damaged or damaged in the first place (before transport).

-We are informed about the policy of cancellation of transactions and returns of products implemented by the stores with which we do business. We are well aware that the rights of withdrawal in distance purchases, as well as the free correction or replacement of defective products, are established consumer rights guaranteed by law, and we are not swayed by false and misleading claims by sellers that they are supposedly privileged – unique and additional benefits.

-We are strongly concerned with prices that are too low, especially when their range is quite far from the usual competition for the respective products or when it comes to product listings exclusively on social media, as there is a serious risk of deception.

-If we buy online from third (non-EU) countries, since Black Friday is an international discount event, we know well in advance that imported products incur customs clearance costs, which may be multiples of the original price and significantly burden it .

-We show a particular preference for stores that voluntarily undertake to resolve a consumer dispute amicably through the institution of out-of-court resolution (e.g. through the Consumer Ombudsman), as in this way the rights of consumers acquire greater value and are even more ensured .