BRATISLAVA – Black Friday is here again and with it the annual question: is it worth shopping? According to the latest online survey, about a third of the population plans to take advantage of the bargains during this year’s Black Friday. However, the enthusiasm is unevenly distributed – while the young Gen Z can’t wait for the discounts, older customers remain significantly more skeptical.
Black Friday, the traditional American shopping holiday, is for many people the symbolic start of the Christmas shopping season. In Slovakia, this trend appeared about ten years ago, and e-shops and traditional stores are competing to see who can offer more attractive promotions to customers.
Slovaks do not believe in discounts
Although a third of Slovaks plan to shop during Black Friday, general confidence in the reality of discounts is relatively low. Only 42 percent of people consider discounts to be really advantageous, more than a third are convinced of the opposite. Men and older consumers are most likely to doubt. This follows from a survey by NMS Market Research.
“This skepticism is probably the result of many experiences with ‘pseudo-discounts,’ when retailers price up products before Black Friday in order to offer seemingly bargains afterward,” says NMS analyst Denisa Lakatošová.
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(Source: NMS Market Research Slovakia)
Electronics are the most worthwhile
Slovaks who have already shopped during Black Friday in the past consider electronics purchases to be the most advantageous. This opinion is mainly held by men. Women agree, but they also add clothes, shoes and cosmetics to the list of things worth buying. A third of customers also highlight discounts on household appliances, and another fifth, especially women, appreciate promotions on perfumes and cosmetic products.
Although Black Friday originally started the tradition of buying Christmas gifts, today’s customers also use it as an opportunity to make their own wishes come true. According to the survey, people most often shop for their immediate family – but almost as often they spend money on themselves.
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(Source: NMS Market Research Slovakia)
The young generation flocks to shopping the most. As many as 57 percent of Gen Z people plan to shop during Black Friday, which is well above average. “Generation Z grew up in the era of digital shopping, and Black Friday is a natural part of the year for them. They combine high online literacy with economic pressure – they know how to compare prices in real time, but at the same time have limited budgets. For them, Black Friday is a unique chance to get electronics or designer clothes that they could not otherwise afford.” adds Lakatošová from NMS.
1,002 respondents took part in the online survey. Data collection took place on a representative sample of the online population of Slovaks aged 18+ from October 1-5, 2025.
