James Davey

LONDON (Reuters] – British retailers believe that Black Friday’s discount day will drive shoppers to the shops, even though it is held against a background of lack of products and drivers who can deliver them.

Black Friday is a crucial trading day in Britain for John Lewis and Currys consumer electrics retailers AO World as well general merchandise retailer Argos. They are all part of the supermarket group Sainsbury’s.

While Tesco (OTC:), Britain’s biggest retailer, and Asda are also participating, some major retailers, including Marks & Spencer (OTC:) and Next, shun the event.

UK retailers revealed that they had received the greatest pre-Christmas orders since 2015, but the steepest price hikes since 1990. The result was due to fear of shortages leading people to shop early for gifts, according figures from Confederation of British Industry.

“We could see a strong sales surge over the Black Friday weekend but shoppers may find that the deals on offer aren’t quite as generous as they’ve been used to in the past,” said Sophie Michael, head of retail at BDO.

“Supply chain disruptions, product shortages and higher costs will mean retailers won’t feel compelled to race to the bottom on price as they have done in previous years.”

On Tuesday, AO issued a warning about limited supply of gaming consoles. Sony (NYSE)’s PlayStation, Microsoft (NASDAQ),’s Xbox and Apple (NASDAQ),’s iPhones are blamed for the worldwide shortage of semiconductor chip chips.

Sainsbury’s also warned consumers earlier in the month that they would experience a shortage of electronic products.

Currys has however said that they are well stock.

International supply chain delays are compounded with labour shortages in domestic transport, warehousing networks and heavy goods vehicle (HGV), driver shortages.

Black Friday promoters are spreading promotions across several weeks to reduce logistics stress and smoothen consumer demand.

Even though the event was brought to Britain by Amazon (NASDAQ):, it still divides opinions.

Retailers can boost their sales with carefully designed promotions, according to supporters.

Some Naysayers believe that Christmas discounts are a way to increase Christmas sales while reducing profit. They also undermine the willingness of consumers to spend full price once again.