In 2014 I opted out of Black Friday, for Reasons. I've been surprisingly pleased with both the feedback I got from customers and the numbers I've seen at the end of each year, not to mention the part where I get to not be a frazzled wreck for the last week of November.
Today I woke up to a flood of Black Friday emails: BUY! SHOP! SAVE! SKIP DINNER AND GO SHOPPING!, they shriek. I deleted all of them unread.
There will be no sale tomorrow, nor in Black Friday, or Small Business Saturday, or Goodshop Sunday, or Cyber Monday, or any other day this week. Life will go on exactly as usual: I'll make shinies, I'll put them on the website, people will probably buy them, I'll ship them out in a reasonably timely manner, and I'll continue to support various charities by donating money or volunteering my time the same way I do all the rest of the year.
I am making one small change, which I've been meaning to do for about a week now: the minimum order for free US shipping + a gift is now $25 instead of $50, and that change is sticking around through the end of the year. [Editor's note, November 2019: It's $35+ now, because postal rates went up again.] I've been considering lowering it for a while, so consider this an experiment; if it does what I think it will do, I'll probably make it a year-round offer.
If you're looking forward to celebrating with family and/or friends tomorrow, I wish you a delicious and peaceful holiday full of good company and stress-free conversation. If you're hiding under the covers waiting for all of this to be over, I offer you some virtual blankets and excellent books and a calming cup of tea for your pillow fort. If you're not in the US, I hope your Thursday is an excellent Thursday.
As for me: I have invitations to at least three Friendsgivings tomorrow, only two of which I expect to be able to attend *shakes fist at the lack of transporters, time-turners, and Tardises* and I'll be happily sleeping in every morning until Monday thanks to my child being old enough to get her own breakfast and us not needing to be ANYWHERE at any specific time for the next few days.
I will proabably build a pillow fort. I will definitely read books and drink tea.
