Despite the increase of shoppers who flock to the deals presented by Black Friday and Cyber Monday, a survey says over 50 per cent of Canadians still believe the best deals are found on Boxing Day.
“There are definitely assumptions that Black Friday would take over, but it hasn’t yet,” Saskatoon Best Buy general manager Rokhan Sarwar said.
“Boxing Day is still a bigger day for retail, especially for Best Buy here, as compared to Black Friday. Black Friday has definitely grown over the years, but it hasn’t surpassed Boxing Day yet.”
The survey, which was conducted by retailmenot.ca, also showed that 74 per cent of Canadians avoid Boxing Day shopping due to the excessive crowds.
WATCH BELOW: Here’s what you should know about Boxing Day 2018
However, there were many people out on Dec. 26 who were willing to put up with the longer wait times and busier stores.
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“We do see lineups every year,” Sarwar said.
“This year was no different. We had lineups start early (as) 5 a.m. CT. We’ve actually seen a steady pace on Boxing Days throughout the years; we really haven’t seen any decline.”
“You’ve got the good and the bad,” Boxing Day shopper Alex Grant said.
“So, we have to wait in the 10-hour line, but we get the hundred-dollar deals. You give and you take. It’s not the end of the world to us because we’re willing to stand in line for a couple of hours.”
For Sarwar and his staff, the customer volume on Boxing Day is something that they plan and prepare themselves for.
“It’s all hands on deck on Boxing Day, so our staff are very excited,” Sarwar said. “We have pretty much 100 per cent of our staff scheduled for the day. We plan for it, we anticipate that the day is going to be bigger, and it has been for the last five to 10 years.”
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