Black Friday might be a relatively new concept in Malta, but the shopping fever seems to have hit local shoppers hard, making it the best day of the year for businesses when it comes to sales.
Several people queued outside stores overnight, eager to get their hands on a cut-price deal. Lines outside shops, especially those selling electronic ware, stretched around the corners in the morning, however the crowds fizzled out by late afternoon.
According to Abigail Mamo, CEO of the GRTU Malta Chamber of SMEs, Black Friday was so far the best day of the year when it comes to sales.
"Even though the day is not over, from the feedback received we can safely say that today will probably be the best day of the year when it comes to sales.
Photo: Matthew Mirabelli"We estimate that this years' Black Friday event will surpass that of previous years,” she said.
The GRTU received positive feedback from all over Malta and Gozo, as people started queuing very early outside shops, with one person waiting in line since 11pm on Thursday, Ms Mamo said.
Read: All the Black Friday deals in Malta. History and how to survive it.
In the coming days, GRTU will be publishing results of a survey conducted among its members and will be able to give more detailed data.
Nine per cent of businesses, who were responding to a survey by GRTU had also said their sales were “much better” than they previous year’s Black Friday.
The US-exported sales day has grown in popularity in recent years, with an increasing number of local retailers jumping on the discount day bandwagon and slashing prices for the event.
Earlier this week, the GRTU expressed concern about traffic congestion problems when shops said their opening hours were being extended from dawn till midnight with special offers.
The association held meetings about traffic flow with the police and Transport Malta, and called on local councils not to issue permits that could block the streets.