Resistance to bargain hunting on Black Friday is growing. Although there are still many brands and retailers capitalizing on the over-hyped American shopping spectacle, there are a growing number of companies looking to use Green Friday as a counterpoint. But how do you approach Green Friday correctly and what options are there? A conversation with Soul Stores founder and sustainable storytelling expert Talita Kalloe shows that a lot is possible. “In principle, everyone can take part in Green Friday; As a company, you don’t have to be 100 percent sustainable. The main thing is to use your influence to speak out against mass consumption. But it’s important that you only do this if the action is in line with your own company values.”
Green Friday is handled differently from company to company. Some choose to donate a portion of their sales to charity on this day, November 24th, while others launch a campaign to take back second-hand clothing in exchange for a voucher. There are also brands that are radically closing their stores and webshops or focusing on repairing items instead.
Kalloe points out that there is actually no right or wrong, as long as the campaign is initiated purely out of intrinsic motivation: “If a company flirts with high discounts for the rest of the year and does little else to encourage conscious consumer behavior: to promote internally, then a Green Friday campaign tends to be greenwashing”.
By the way, anyone who thinks that more sustainable brands never take part in Black Friday is mistaken. Kalloe gives the example of bedding brand Yumeko, which took part in Black Friday in 2022 – and also used the term Black Friday – but explained very clearly why. “They wanted to be able to offer a sustainable alternative to non-sustainable bed and bath linen, especially on Black Friday. In addition, the discount only comes at the expense of your own margin and not at the expense of the income of the Indian farmers. With the proceeds from the Black Friday Sale 2022, they were able to provide 49 Indian farming families with a fair income. This is also mentioned in their sales impact report that is published each year.”
So there is transparent communication about why a sustainable brand like Yumeko participated in Black Friday in the first place. So everything has a story, it seems. “You can’t blame consumers for looking for discounts; After all, not everyone can afford everything. The trick for a brand is to properly inform consumers about why you are offering this discount and what they are contributing to when they shop with you.”
Green Friday: Tips for an authentic approach
As already mentioned, there are also companies that carry out take-back campaigns and give products and items a second life. In return, consumers receive a voucher that they can redeem in store. This is where things can get a little tricky, as a voucher still encourages consumption. “I see what you mean,” Kalloe admits. “But this is also about nuances. If it’s a sustainable brand or retailer, the amount spent still ends up with a company that can handle it well.” She has another tip for multi-brand retailers: “If you set up a promotion for Green Friday, If you issue a voucher, for example, only allow this voucher to be valid for the most sustainable brands in your range.”
Belgian brand Xandres is taking a bold step this year. It will forego the web shop and stores and instead take a different approach: the Xandres teams will repair old or damaged clothing free of charge. From November 1st to 22nd, consumers can drop off their damaged clothing at one of the Xandres stores. The campaign was also carried out in 2022; At that time, 600 items of clothing were repaired. This year, in addition to the repairs, a number of trees will be planted in Madagascar for each piece of clothing repaired. Kalloe appreciates Xandres’ action. “So they say: I would rather not make any money that day than have someone else pay the price. Dille & Kamille has been doing this for several years by closing the doors of their store and online shop on Black Friday.”
The introduction to Green Friday, the counterpart to Black Friday
The bag brand Freitag, for example, is also closing the doors of its physical and online shops. It will not be possible to buy a bag on this day, but you can rent a bag from the Friday shops. “The day of excessive discounts simply does not fit with Friday’s goal of using resources more consciously and sparingly,” says a press release from the brand. Instead, consumers can borrow a bag free of charge for two weeks.
But how do you explain to customers that they can’t buy anything that day, no matter how much they might want to? “This is all about being well informed and clarifying the context. As a company, you need to be able to explain why you created the campaign and why it is important. What behavior do you want to encourage? You also need to anticipate critical questions. This way, consumers have all the information at their fingertips and can decide for themselves whether they want to participate or not.”
Green Friday is not just intended for more sustainable brands – not at all as Kalloe emphasizes. “On the contrary: I think it would be great if companies that are not yet fully sustainable used their influence to make a strong statement against mass consumption. Sustainable storytelling is all about transparency, clarity, credibility and authenticity. It’s not a bad thing if as a company you can admit that you’re not doing everything 100% right, but you’re doing your best and constantly improving. It is important that you set a counterpoint that fits your own values. For example, if you are known for quality, then it is an idea to offer repairs on Green Friday that will extend the lifespan of the clothing even further, that is also sustainable,” says the expert in sustainable storytelling.
“Your statement must align with your intrinsic motivation, purpose and values. No matter how well-intentioned you are, if it doesn’t fit, it can work against you. To say it again: You make a Green Friday statement without greenwashing by staying true to your own values and authenticity and being transparent in your communication.”
This article originally appeared on FashionUnited.nl. Translated and edited by Simone Preuss.