Black Friday has passed and I did not get trampled as the doors opened to my favorite retailer after sleeping outside in long, cold lines. That’s because I wouldn’t do something like that. But those stories are disturbing to me and not because people are so consumed by shopping. I saw and heard too many instances of retailers taking advantage of consumers. It used to be that bait-and-switch or purely false advertising was a rare occurence that was structured to avoid detection. This year it seemed to be commonplace, in-your-face retail and no one is ashamed to be caught by it. I understand the fine line of using ads to attract consumers to stores before they spend their dollars elsewhere, but this was not a fine line. I wonder how many of those loyal shoppers will still be loyal after braving the elements and violent bargain hunters only to hear that the 4 units of $200 computers or plasma tv’s were sold out in the first few seconds. Rain checks? Yeah right!! People got sucked in by ads for amazing values and the attitude of many retail employees seemed to take joy in the game.

Every year, the Monday following Thanksgiving is full of analysis about Black Friday and what this means for the state of the consumer and the remaining shopping season. I usually ignore it, because I don’t think it proves anything. I do think Dana Telsey is sharp so at least that will be worth watching, but otherwise, it’s questionable data. Some years it has been good but the rest of the year disappoints. Other times the reverse is true. Regardless, we’ll certainly hear our share of retail mania tomorrow. Maybe I should avoid it all and spend my day shopping!!