Black Friday as Told From the Other Side of the Cash Register

For as long as I can remember, tradition and society alike have told me it’s a good idea to dash to the nearest shopping center and spend an entire 24 hours hunting bargains and slashed prices during the sheer madness that is the day after Thanksgiving, or, in layman’s terms, Black Friday. This year, for the first time since 2010, I’ll be spending the craziest shopping day of the year on the side of the cash register opposite of where I spent the past three. This is the first holiday season in quite some time for me that will not be spent working retail.

If you think shopping on Black Friday is chaotic, try being a sales associate during the insanity. I spent my retail stint (a stint that lasted considerably longer than I had originally anticipated, mind you) happily employed by Macy’s, the world’s biggest and best department store. Naturally a company with that sort of reputation draws an enormous crowd on Black Friday. Lines of serious shoppers eagerly awaiting the store’s opening regularly formed outside the main entrances while we, the sales associates, battened down the hatches for what was sure to be a night, early morning, and day of utter chaos.

Utter chaos though it was, Black Friday never under delivered in the entertainment department. Hidden exclusions that forbade the use of a slew of coupons always cropped up, merchandise that the store was guaranteed to have a seemingly endless supply of ran out, and customers that you pegged as only a little grouchy were always infinitely more ill-tempered and unhappy to see you than you initially assumed. Against all odds, we, the associates, somehow managed to muddle through our shifts with the majority of our spirit and sanity remaining. All the things that didn’t work or went wrong or totally contradicted any prior sales training made for some truly unforgettable Black Friday memories.

This Thanksgiving, after the dishes are cleared and the leftovers are stowed away for the next week’s worth of meals, I will head to the mall at my leisure and partake in Black Friday festivities in a much different fashion than what I’m used to. As I’m hunting down my own holiday deals, I’ll recall my craziest-shopping-day-of-the-year experiences as a Macy’s sales associate and how each and every one of them were spent surrounded by some of the best people I’ve ever met. It was honestly more enjoyable than I prefer to let on.

To all the die-hard holiday shoppers, have fun and be safe as you brave the masses this year. Finally and perhaps most importantly, be nice to be the sales associates you encounter amidst the hustle and bustle because they really do want to help you. Take it from someone who lived and breathed retail for some odd years – I know what I’m talking about.

 

For as long as I can remember, tradition and society alike have told me it’s a good idea to dash to the nearest shopping center and spend an entire 24 hours hunting bargains and slashed prices during the sheer madness that is the day after Thanksgiving, or, in layman’s terms, Black Friday. This year, for the first time since 2010, I’ll be spending the craziest shopping day of the year on the side of the cash register opposite of where I spent the past three. This is the first holiday season in quite some time for me that will not be spent working retail.

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