Why We Don't Support Black Friday

An open letter to you, our loyal customers and followers, from our founder Jacynth:

Dear Customers and Followers,

Since our launch in 2016, we have refused to compromise on our principles and values. Integrity is at the heart of everything we do. For some, Black Friday is an annual tradition, whilst for others it's - now a month-long - spectacle of adverts, deals and emails (with some retailers even employing sneaky tactics such as increasing their prices beforehand). This just doesn't sit right with us.

So every year you can rely on us refusing to engage. Here's why:

We are a UK-based retailer 

As we all know, Black Friday started in the United States. Whilst the day after Thanksgiving isn't a public holiday, many do decide to take it off, so for decades stores in the US have used the opportunity to make it into a discounting event. It’s only become a ‘tradition’ over here in the UK since 2013 when it was introduced by ASDA (a Walmart owned company). 

The irony is that ASDA publicly renounced Black Friday a few years ago, whilst other stores have taken to adopting it. However to us, it doesn't feel right taking advantage of an event that stems from a national holiday when we aren’t based in the US.

The Bias Cut is a UK retailer. And, whilst we truly value those of you lovely customers and followers from across the pond – and we wish all of you a very happy Thanksgiving - we believe celebrating Black Friday is disrespectful to the origins of an occasion that is fundamental to your nation’s history. It’s appropriating an event for purely commercial purposes. It would be different it we celebrated Thanksgiving too. But we don't. So Black Friday really has no relevance to us at all.

We Value Our Designs

And there’s another big reason too. Sales as a whole have got out of control. We’re in a nightmare race to the bottom, that only big corporations can survive (and at the expense of many others).

Independent retailers and designers in the Fashion Industry cannot compete. If they believe in upholding ethical standards, respecting their staff, and refusing to cut corners, they simply cannot afford to keep slashing prices. What’s-more, in doing so they would be devaluing the products and offerings that they have put their love and lives into. It’s fair to say constant discounts have made us loose sense of what things are really worth. 

If a design is poor quality, or fast disposable fashion, sales are the nature of the game. The retailers’ business models are built on the premise that they churn out as much as possible, for as little as possible, sell it quickly in bulk, and repeat. But at The Bias Cut we don't sell fast disposable fashion - we’re proud of the fact that our designs are of excellent quality and versatility. And that we refuse to sell you something that will fall apart in weeks, or look out-dated in 4 months time. As a result, we believe that our prices fairly reflect that. 

We want you to know that when you buy from us, the price you pay really is worth it. It does accurately reflect the quality of the piece, the craftsmanship of the designer, and the efforts our team has gone to make sure you have the best shopping experience possible.

So call us old-fashioned (even if our fashion’s aren’t!). But we’re sticking to the traditional sale cycle, with the occasional mid-season exclusive offer to our Style Club members. We won’t be dragged into this never-ending circus. Because we value our designers, we value our staff, we value ethical, slow fashion, and we value you. 

Jacynth x