What is Single’s Day? It all began in 1993, when Nanjing University wanted their youth to celebrate being single on the date with the most “ones.” Since then it has morphed into an online fun zone by Alibaba – a Chinese e-commerce company with sites Tmail and Taobao. Placing down payments on half-price Cadillacs, offering Moet Chandon Brut Imperial for $11.11, and numerous other games and contests are designed to keep people online – engaged and spending money,
Why then, with the power of online shopping proven beyond any doubt, are people still manic over getting to the stores before 6pm Thanksgiving Day or 4am on Black Friday? With dangerous and rude customers, frustrating traffic, and low inventory, the last place you will find me on Thursday or Friday is in a retail store. Thanksgiving is about spending time with family, not spending it waiting in line to get the cheapest television or the latest iPhone®. While many workers may be happy to pick up the extra shift on Thanksgiving Day, others are forced to separate from spending time with their loved ones.
Let’s compare: 11/11 is a day about celebrating oneself that developed on its own into the biggest shopping day of the year; Black Friday piggybacked off a holiday about giving thanks and hasn’t even come close to actually being the biggest shopping day of the year. See my point?
~ Tiffany LaSpina, Account Supervisor and Thanksgiving Advocate, The S3 Agency
