Black Friday 2014: The Middle East Should Prepare Itself forThe Biggest Online Shopping Day In Its History

Etisalat, Du, Samsung, Microsoft, Huawei, Mini from AGMC,Sony, HP, Lenovo,Nokia, and MasterCard are amongst brands confirmed to offer exclusive deals through the region’s largest online retailer Souq.com, on a day which Souq.com is coining as “WhiteFriday”.

17th November, 2014, DUBAI: ‘Black Friday’, the world’s biggest day of sales, is set to hit the Middle East this year, as Souq.com, the region’s largest online retailer confirms that over 20 top brands will be launching their biggest and exclusive deals of the year through its platform on the 27th and 28th November.

‘Black Friday’, so named due to its effect of getting brands ‘back in the black’, has long since been one of America’s biggest shopping days, and over the past decade has been steadily gaining momentum worldwide. Last year, the US National Retail Federation estimated that over $52billion was spent during the Black Friday shopping period in the US. But whilst Souq.com will be bringing Black Friday style deals to the region, it will not be importing the name. In the Middle East, Friday is day of worship, gathering, friends and family; and as such, the e-taileris calling the day ‘White Friday, a day of prosperity, celebration and joy.

Souq.com, like many retailers in the US, will extend its sale period, launching its White Friday discounts from the 27th November until midnight on the 28th November, with a preview on its mobile app on the 26th November. The company is expecting 10 million visits, and is offering more than 250,000 items on a special discount for this event.

There are 1000 exclusive offers on Souq.com during this period including Etisalat, Du, Apple, Samsung, Sony, LG, Huawei, Microsoft, Nokia Lumia,Mini from AGMC, Xbox, PlayStation, Lenovo, Motorola, Infinix, InnJoo, Archos, Du, Etisalat, and IntelCtroniq. Souq has also partnered with Pepsi, Icflix,Rotanato offer once-in-a-lifetime value for that weekend only.
Souq.com CEO & Founder, Ronaldo Mouchawar states:

“The launch of White Friday, this one weekend of huge discounts, is a huge step-change in this region’s online market. Out of the 110 million people on-line in the region, approximately only a quarter of these people are online shoppers.  Our objective is to encourage people who are not buying online to do so on this day, by offering unrivalled deals and discounts on the most popular brands for limited time only. We have partnered with brands who share the same objective, growing their online business, ranging from Telcos, manufacturers launching exclusive models, to FMCGs trying on line for the first time.”

“In addition, it will be a great opportunity for our Marketplace Sellers to avail of the big event and significant increase in traffic to grow their businesses of all sizes”

Other than the product deals on offer, Souq.com hasdeveloped even more ways to provide value to its consumers during White Friday. Through an exclusive partnership with MasterCard, consumers who make a purchase using their MasterCard credit card will receive a further 15% off all deals. 
“During the White Friday, we will of course still be offering Cash On Delivery; COD currently accounts for over 70% of payments on our site. However, we are seeing a shift towards credit card usage, as consumers in this region are starting to become more comfortable with online payments” says Ronaldo Mouchawar. “We’ve developed the partnership with MasterCard to further shift the needle towards credit card payments online”.

Furthermore, in a bid to encourage mobile commerce, Souq.com, in partnership with Pepsi, is offering consumers who download the Souq.com mobile app a 24 hour exclusive window to get access to the top deals, on the 26th of November.
Mouchawar adds “Mobile is booming in this region, and in the UAE, we have the highest smartphone penetration in the world with 72%; almost three smartphones per person. Mobile commerce is a key facilitator in the adoption of e-commerce”
Souq.com’s White Friday deals will be live from the 26th November, exclusively through the Souq.com mobile app, and from 27th – 28th November at Souq.com. The mobile app can be downloaded at http://uae.Souq.com/ae-en/mobile-app/c/and users can join the online conversation by using #WhiteFriday”