Certain American trends have now become mainstream here in Norway. I don't remember what year it started (probably within the last ten years), but Black Friday suddenly became a happening in late November. In fact, stores have their Black Fridays on the same day as in the USA, the day after Thanksgiving. But there's not just Black Friday, we also have Black Weekend, and Black Week. I'm waiting for Black Month to appear. Cyber Monday has become popular too. The strange thing is, just like in the USA, Black Friday has become the most important (profit-wise) shopping day for most stores here in Norway. It makes sense in a way, because most people use the day/weekend as an excuse to start their Christmas shopping. But it seems strange (in a humorous way), that this country managed to adopt an American trend without adopting the holiday before it--Thanksgiving. Since Norway and the rest of Western Europe have now incorporated Halloween into their cultures, I'm waiting for Thanksgiving to be next. Why not? It is a day of thanks. Even if it is a uniquely American holiday, other countries could celebrate the gratitude aspect of the holiday. But even if it doesn't happen, I will smile at this time of year, each year, when Black Friday advertisements in Norway dominate in newspapers, on TV, and on social media. Norwegians love to shop, just like Americans. We're not so different as it turns out. Here is a sampling of some of the ads that we've gotten during the past week.
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| The newspaper Aftenposten with its Black Friday insert showing the ad sponsors |
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| Max Sport |
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| Black Friday sales at one of the huge malls--Sandvika Storsenter |
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| Black Friday sales right over the border in Sweden--food and lots of it |
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| XXL sports store--Black Friday weekend (!) |
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| Skeidar furniture store Black Friday sales |
