From Black to Green Friday: How Belgian and Dutch shops are redefining the day

Friday, November 24, dawns the day of the year that is all about tempting discounts. Brands and shops eagerly pick up on the period around Black Friday. But the eye-catching ads and excitement of bargain hunting have a dark side: the global ecological and psychological consequences of this shopping madness.

More and more voices are calling for Green Friday. A more sustainable approach to the day that instead draws attention to making conscious choices. Both for the world and for yourself.

The psychological downside of overconsumption

Niki De Schryver, founder of COSH!, notes that, unfortunately, there is still a need to expose the consequences of overconsumption during Black Friday. 

Black Friday is often seen as a day in a shopping paradise of spectacular deals. It suggests that ​‘happiness’ is just a click or purchase away. But underneath it lies a false promise: owning more stuff equals more happiness. Such materialism takes our focus away from what truly enriches us: experiences, connection and personal growth. 

The consequences afterwards go beyond purchase regret. Purchased headfirst, products often become clutter that fills not only our physical space but also our inner self. COSH! therefore encourages investing in experiences, which research has consistently shown bring more lasting happiness than material possessions.

Green Friday and Circular Monday: growing alternatives

Awareness around the impact of consumerism has created initiatives such as ​‘Green Friday’ and ​‘Circular Monday’. These alternative events encourage consumers to make conscious choices. Green Friday encourages you to think about where products come from, the conditions of the people who make them and the impact of production on the environment and your own life.

Isolde Delanghe, Director of Fashion Union adds: ​“We see fewer and fewer independent fashion retailers offering discounts on Black Friday. Discounting in the middle of the selling season is simply not feasible nowadays. Certainly not after the successive crises that made it difficult for the sector. Consumers know they will find fair prices without inflated discounts at their local fashion retailer and value that credibility. Independent retailers therefore prefer to bet on charities to help support society. They also put strength to the message around conscious shopping.”

Niki: ​“The realisation that if all entrepreneurs pull the same cart and radically say ​‘no’ to discounts that put pressure on their own margins and also teach consumers to delay their purchases, is good. Together, local entrepreneurs are stronger than if they individually decide to go against the status quo. That gives hope. In this way, awareness around overconsumption is also growing among customers.”

Local initiatives

More and more brands and shops are shifting their focus from profit to supporting local charities and organisations or informing and inspiring their customers through workshops or recovery initiatives. Discover some Belgian and Dutch initiatives here:

Line Vanden Bogaerde – Gent

Jewellery designer Line Vanden Bogaerde inspires her customers to take care of their jewellery by giving a free jewellery polishing cloth with every purchase in November. You can also visit the shop on Green Friday and the following Saturday to have your jewellery polished.

FREITAG – Rotterdam

FREITAG goes a step further: they will close the Rotterdam shop (online and physical) for half a day, and the second half of the day the shop will open only for those who want to borrow a FREITAG bag. With this, they want to reinforce their manifesto, preferring to make products accessible rather than owned.

SeventyOne – Gent, Brugge, Leuven en Antwerpen

Sell your retro clothes to SeventyOne on Circular Friday and give them a new life. SeventyOne will re-sell them in the re-sale section of their shops. In exchange, you will receive a SeventyOne voucher.

Supergoods – Antwerpen, Mechelen, Gent

Supergoods offers 0% discount on their collection. Pay the full price of your clothes to support fair employment and encourage responsible manufacturing.

Druantia – Lier

Throughout Green Friday week, Druantia is offering free shipping through their webshop. They also donate 1 euro for every order to Wielewaal, the local branch of Natuurpunt. Each euro helps plant native hedge plants such as elderberry, willow and hawthorn. As a sponsor, they support the development and maintenance of nature reserve Nazareth-Zuid.

Meisje met de Parels – Margraten

At Meisje met de Parels, 24 November is ​“Buy Less And Choose Kindness for the planet Friday” instead of Black Friday. Instead of running a discount promotion, this shop will donate 15% of the purchase amount to Greenpeace over the weekend of Black Friday.

Zonnehoed – Zwalm

No Black Friday, but Support Broes Dag at Zonnehoed! Customers can select vzw Broes in their shopping cart to support the organisation. VZW Broes is a Zwalm-based organisation that wants to bring every bit of nature, every metre of unpaved path and every splash of water to the people.

The Plastic Free Co. – Amsterdam

During Green Friday, get 15% off your order at The Plastic Free Co, a zero-waste webshop based in Amsterdam. Enter the code GREEN15 and shop your essentials for a zero-waste lifestyle!

Anna Rosa Moschouti – Antwerpen

Every year during the period around Black Friday, Anna Rosa Moschouti takes a step back from the madness. Instead, the brand focuses on content on how best to maintain your jewellery to give it a long life. As such, you get a free cleaning cloth with every order. They also offer free repairs or touch-ups of your older A.R.M. pieces. Send in your old jewellery or bring it in to the shop in Antwerp for a dose of TLC.

Natacha Cadonici – Brussel

Natacha Cadonici shares her knowledge about sustainable fashion, organic fabrics, fabrics sourced from deadstock and local production in Brussels. She also shares additional information showing how a sale price is constructed and what net remains for the designer.

NaaiPunt – Antwerpen

NaaiPunt will transform your old jumpers into mittens and a hat together with you during a workshop. For example, do you have a shrunken jumper lying around because you washed them too hot? No worries, SewPoint will help you give them a new life. Some basic sewing skills will come in handy during this workshop.

MOS – Brugge

MOS is hosting a workshop on natural body and face care products with Green Friday. Sign up and get the best tips for a natural and healthy skincare routine!

OHNE – Gent

At OHNE​’s zero-waste shops in Ghent, Aalst, Deinze, Zwalm and Ternat, 20% of profits from 24 to 25 November will go to a future OHNE River Cleanup with partner DOKANO. Buying at OHNE is a conscious choice in itself, but on Green Friday, the impact of your choice is doubled!

King Louie – Amsterdam

The King Louie brand is hosting a workshop with sustainable shopping expert Laura, who will give tips on sustainable shopping and styling. The workshop MINDER KOPEN, MEER JOUW STIJL will be available online on King Louie’s social media and website.

The Soul Store – Oostkamp

The Soul Store offers a 20% discount on black reusable cotton pads and aroma diffusers. This offer is only valid on Friday, 24 November, with the code BLACK20.

Xzota – Rotterdam

Jewellery brand Xzota makes all their jewellery by hand. They are ornate with a playful twist. In this, influences from Dutch and Indonesian culture are interwoven into unique designs. With Black Friday, you get 20% discount in the Xzota shop in Rotterdam and online.

Café De Nîmes – Aalst

At Café De Nîmes, you can find a great range of jeans for men and women! During Black Friday, you get a discount on all black items here.

LOYA – Breda

LOYA is organising Bring Back Friday! Throughout the week of 20 – 25 November, you will receive an extra stamp on your LOYA recycle card when handing in old clothes (that meet the conditions). With a full recycle card (5 stamps) you will receive 20% discount on the new collection! So, if you hand in 4 old items, you will get the 5^th stamp added by LOYA. With Bring Back Friday, we make sure that old clothes do not end up on the rubbish heap but can be used for recycling or get another good destination.

VEGA-LIFE – Amsterdam

VEGA-LIFE is participating in the Green Friday movement. On this day, there will be no discounts but a conscious shopping experience! Take this opportunity to explore the shop and find everything for a vegan lifestyle, from food to clothes and shoes.

Teint Teint – Antwerpen

Once again, Teint Teint is not participating in Black Friday this year. Instead, they are partnering with Jennifer Busking, a local jewellery designer. Jennifer Busking will have a pop-up in the Teint Teint shop in Antwerp during the week of Black Friday. In this way, Teint Teint encourages local shopping. 

Blabloom

Blabloom in Genk is celebrating Rainbow Friday this year as a counterpart to Black Friday. Embrace what the rainbow symbolises: connection, hope, and diversity. As advocates of ecological and conscious living, they do not think the mass consumption of Black Friday fits their values. Instead, they call for donations to the charity vzw Boven de Wolken, with Blabloom doubling every donation of 5 euros. Together with Hello August, they are launching a Rainbow Card, with all proceeds going to the charity. 

During Rainbow Friday weekend, they will offer various connecting activities both online and in their concept store in Genk, including a rainbow photo booth, a children’s play paradise, a tasting of rainbow drinks and collaborative art projects. Live sessions on Instagram, bricks-fun, demonstrations and read-aloud moments for children complete the weekend.

Harvest Club

Harvest Club in Leuven, distances itself from the US concept of Black Friday. They make their products available throughout the season at fair prices and reward loyalty with a loyalty card system rather than offering discount offers. They believe sustainability is best promoted by giving customers time to think about their purchases, not by encouraging them to buy because of discounts. Such promotions have a negative impact on retail, which is why Harvest Club calls for local and fair shopping. You are therefore welcome to visit their shop for a late-night shopping experience without discounts, but loving the beautiful products and customers until 9pm on Friday night.

Het Faire Oosten 

Friday, 24 November, is not Black Friday at Het Faire Oosten in Amsterdam, but Repair Friday in collaboration with the brand Faguo! Drop by the shop between 13:00 and 17:00 for a free clothing repair (max 30 minutes). Your garment will then be repaired on the spot.

What makes repair so sustainable? If you double the use of your garment, CO2 emissions are reduced by up to 40% over its lifetime. In addition, you avoid buying a new item to replace your old garment.

Moose in the City

Moose in the City in Antwerp is doing Green Black Friday. For 12 years, they have chosen to operate in a consistent and sustainable way. Their Friendly Friday initiative puts local shopping in the picture, with consideration for people, animals and the planet. So you won’t find sky-high discounts, but you will find warmth, kindness and love for nature. You will also get a free coffee from their neighbours, The Brothers of Julienne, on purchases from €50. Moose in the City thanks their customers for shopping with them on Friendly Friday (but also any other day). 

While Black Friday is often associated with excessive consumption, these retailers prove it can be different. With a focus on environmental friendliness and social responsibility, they not only offer great promotions and events but also a chance to make conscious choices as consumers.

Let’s embrace the Green Friday movement and increase the positive impact by thoughtfully selecting our purchases. Together, we will create a world where sustainability and shopping fun go hand in hand!