Jason MoorePalma14/11/2018 19:02
TW

It is quite amazing really. It wasn't too long ago that shops in Majorca were heavily regulated regarding their "sales" period. They could only discount items on "given days" and "given times" a year. It was a very old-fashioned system which naturally had its critics. It was designed to protect small shopkeepers. But over recent years all this legislation has gone out of the window and shops are now slashing their prices when they want, not when the government tells them. It is certainly a step forward.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday have become two of the top selling days of the year in Majorca. Five years ago Black Friday was unknown on the island. For many people these sales periods are great times to get an early Christmas present. But can the small shops really complete against the heavy discounting of the big shops? Well, of course not but the Balearic government or the local councils can't block progress. This is the way forward. The growth in online shopping is hurting the High Street and of course even the big stores have to compete. The smaller shops face a rather uncertain future and probably they can only compete through specialisation and quality service.

I welcome Black Friday and all the new sales periods; they are the future. Some on the island may question why so many new "traditions" are coming in from the other side of the Atlantic. Well, it is called progress and the future, so we shouldn't really complain.