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I could do a month of Thanksgiving Thursdays. It’s one of my favorite days of the year. And doing it that way means putting off the following day.
I think you know which dreadful day I’m taking about ... Black Friday.
Shopping isn’t fun for me, and there are tens of millions of men (and some women, too) who agree with me. But I’m a dad, and my children were young before the e-commerce explosion.
So, I was forced to fight crowds to get my hands on some of those deals.
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One Black Friday stands out ...
It was 2005. Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) had just released its newest gaming console, the Xbox 360, with big production runs. But demand was so strong it was one of the most difficult-to-get toys that Christmas season.
My young sons desperately wanted the new Xbox, so I set my alarm for 4:00 a.m., drove 15 miles and lined up with a bunch of other Black Friday diehards at the Best Buy Co. Inc. (Nasdaq: BBY) store in Kalispell, Mont.
I arrived shortly before 5:00 a.m., but there were still about 45 people ahead of me.
I did, however, luck out and get one of the very last Xbox 360 units for sale ... and my boys jumped for joy when they unwrapped it on Christmas morning.
Let me tell you, standing in a line in late November in the freezing Montana cold is something I’ll never do again.
In the 15 years since then, Black Friday has evolved into largely an internet phenomenon these days. That’s especially true this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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Black Friday revenues have increased from $1.9 billion in 2013 to $7.4 billion in 2019. And online sales for Black Friday 2020 should be one for the record books as lockdowns force shoppers online.
So, which e-commerce retailers stand to haul in the most revenues this weekend? Well, most likely the ones that have prospered the most during the coronavirus pandemic:
Company E-Commerce / Market Share:
Amazon.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) 38.7%
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) 5.3%
eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY) 4.7%
Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) 3.7%
The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE: HD) 1.7%
Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W) 1.5%
Best Buy Co. Inc. (Nasdaq: BBY) 1.3%
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) 1.2%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (Nasdaq: COST) 1.2%
Amazon.com dominates the industry, and that isn’t going to change anytime soon.
If you’re a fan of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), there are three focused on e-commerce worth your attention:
- Amplify Online Retail ETF (NYSE: IBUY)
- Global X E-commerce ETF (Nasdaq: EBIZ)
- ProShares Online Retail ETF (NYSE: ONLN)
I sure wish there would have been more online shopping choices back in 2005. I wouldn’t have had to freeze my butt off with a bunch of strangers in front of Best Buy.
Of course, thinking about the looks on my sons faces on Christmas morning made that trip worth it in the long run.
I hope you see similar joy this holiday season.
Best wishes,
Tony
