Malaysia gears up for Black Friday sales

Malaysian retailers are bracing for yet another shopping extravaganza – the Black Friday sales – today.

Black Friday, the Friday after Thanksgiving Day, is widely considered to be the United States’ biggest shopping day of the year, with big slashes in prices of items.

On the other side of the world, Malaysian retailers are also cashing in on the trend in recent years, giving rebates to big ticket items and everyday necessities.

Pavilion KL chief executive officer (retail) Datuk Joyce Yap said a lot of its tenants have put up previews of their offerings to shoppers.

“I expect good sales on Black Friday today and over the weekend, ” she said.

A spokesperson from 1 Utama Shopping Centre said its shopping hours have been extended to 11pm today for shoppers to get great deals.

“We did this last year and received an overwhelming response. This is to accommodate those who finish work late, ” the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said the mall would also be offering entertainment activities, shopping deals and freebies to customers.

The Black Friday Sale event, the spokesperson said, would be ongoing at 1 Utama until the weekend.

Malaysia Retail Chain Association president Datuk Seri Garry Chua, however, said while retailers are likely to see an increase in sales for Black Friday, it will not be significant.

“Black Friday sales is not so popular here. There will be some increase in sales but will not have a huge impact on retailers, ” he said.

A spokesperson from fashion e-commerce site Zalora said it is expected that various sales campaigns towards the end of the year will continue to bolster consumer sentiments.

“End-of-year festivities are the positive driver for sales in fashion e-commerce.”

The spokesperson said the recent Singles’ Day on Nov 11 brought heavy traffic to their website and app and they anticipated a similar response on Black Friday.

Some Malaysians are also anticipating the sales.

A woman who only wanted to be identified as Melanie said she would be doing her Christmas shopping on Black Friday.

Although Singles Day has only recently passed, the 25-year-old writer said it is “never too soon for another sale”.

“The more sales the better when it comes to Christmas shopping, ” she added.

This year would be her first time doing online shopping for her Christmas gifts.

“I can do it at work without having to worry about going to the malls and getting disappointed if I cannot find anything there, ” she said.

She also said she will be shopping for clothes, accessories and browsing for electronic items on Cyber Monday (the Monday following Black Friday).

Others are adopting a wait-and-see attitude to see what bargains are in store.

Adam Zulkifli said he would be keeping his eyes on sweet deals for games and consoles at the Impulse Gaming store or Gamers Hideout.

The teacher, in his 30s, said he would be extra cautious, making sure the deal offered is truly worthwhile.

Elizabeth Tan said she looks forward to shopping on Black Friday, hoping for some good deals.

Tan, who previously lived in the US, said items can be reduced to as much as 70% in America.

“They also give a lot of ‘thrills’ as well, like the scratch and win cards, where additional discounts and freebies are given as part of the deal, ” said the 25-year-old who works in the IT industry.

source: http://www.thestar.com.my