What is Black Friday?
Black Friday is the single most awaited sale of the year in North America. According to Britannica, the name Black Friday was coined in the 1960’s after a surge of suburbanites flocked to Philadelphia a day after Thanksgiving to begin their holiday shopping, causing a lot of traffic jams and some road accidents. However, it was only in the 1980’s when the event became a national thing in the USA and eventually in Canada. Black Friday became a positive observation as businesses described it as the beginning of the time of the year when business summaries go from red line (losses) to black line (profit). Since then, Black Friday, which is the day right after American Thanksgiving, has become a day to shop as there are doorbuster sales in all retail stores that people literally camp outside stores and line up to get first dibs on mega sales.
Cyber Monday
Another “shopping holiday” was created for the sake of the emergence of e-commerce, Cyber Monday. During Cyber Monday, as the name implies, all the sales happen online. This quite recent event happens on the Monday following American Thanksgiving. Cyber Monday encourages people to shop online.
Practical students must take advantage of Black Friday sales and Cyber Monday deals to save some pennies for the rainy days! Here are sales that you need to look out for to go crazy shopping without actually breaking your bank:
Student Room
What makes a student room a student room?
Three basic things are a bed, a study table, and a reliable study lamp.
Here are the best offers Canada has for this year’s Black Friday to get your room furnished with the basics!
Walmart Canada
Retail giant Walmart has a lot of affordable deals to furnish your room.
Sales start online on November 17 at 9p.m. est!

Not only can you get discounted brand new bedframes that start at 150 dollars, you can also expect sales on appliances such as eletric kettle airfryers, vacuum cleaner, television set, toys and gaming!
wayfair.ca
Wayfair is one of Canada’s most trusted and biggest online only shop. Sales from wayfair starts at 40% off for bedroom furniture and if you feeling fancy, they have great deals on room accessories and furnishings.
Bed Bath and Beyond
All you can ever ask for to create your student room a home away from home can be found in Bed Bath and Beyond. They even have a whole section dedicated for your student life under their “University” section – you can sign up for their newsletter and get additional memeber’s benefit and discount.

Tech Support
We will all be lying if we deny that technology gives us a huge support to finish school, specially since we’ve been struck by the pandemic and everything moved digital. So keep your eyes peeled for this sales to get your “tech support”.
Best Buy
Best Buy is one of the crowd favorite during Black Friday because it is North America’s favorite hub for techie gadgets and appliances. For this year, best buy is having not only a Black Friday Day but a whole Black Friday month so you get early access on sales plus extended sale up to the end of the month!
You can save as much as $300 or more on laptop sales!

The Source CA
The Source is the largest Canadian tech retailer. They offer great tech discounts and deals plus financing that allows buyer to pay in monthly instalments . If you are looking to score some apple products, The Source is the place to be. They are the one of the few places that offers discounts on macbook and imac.
Student Supplies
Staples
Staples is any student or teacher go-to school supply store and more. Staples has a wide array of school and office suplly that goes from simple pad paper, to notebooks to desks, computer chair, printer and services like scanning and printing for affordable prices. Staples has also a unique feature for members called “Staples School Tools” wherein teachers can make a list of recommended school supplies so that students can purchase exactly what they need for their class.

Indigo, Chapters and Cole
The sister companies Indigo, Cole and Chapters is a haven for book lovers and those that love stationary products and just about any other trinkets for reading, decorating a study space and even a kid’s section for young readers to enjoy and explore.


Winter Wardrobe Haul
Having a suitable wardrobe for Canada’s weather is an essential and international students must get ready for it. For the sake of it all, it is best to invest in not necessarily branded clothes but those that gets your money’s worth – something that can last you for years.
You know what happens next in Canada after November? SNOW! So here is our top picks to get you ready for winter,
H&M
H&M has been in the wardrobe of any international student for sure. They offer reasonable prices for decent clothings that are actually trendy. H&M also gives membership discounts plus you can donate or recycle clothes in exchange of discount coupons.

Winners and Marshalls
It doesn’t have to be Black Friday for Winners and Marshalls to give away discounts. These two stores is a hail mary for shopaholics where you can find unbelievably great deals on branded items. In these stores, prices are all marked down compared to their original price or at other competitor stores.
Nordstrom and nordstrom rack, and Hudson’s Bay
If you are feeling a bit fancy,you can go to Nordstrom and Hudson’s bay because this is the best time to raid them! Based on their website, sales can go up to 60% off on boots and jackets. Sales for Christmas shopping is also happening early this year, so hit the stores while the best are still on stock!
Shopping outlets
You may also visit the nearest shopping outlet near you and join the Black Friday Day Sale craze cautiously. Shopping outlets gets the busiest during Black Friday, people swarm into outlets and line up at stores for hours! So if visiting an outlet is in your plan, make sure to alot a whole day of crazy shopping.
We hope we helped you with some penny pinching ideas on Black Friday sales! Remember to shop responsibly and practice Covid-19 protocols. Happy shopping!