03/01/2024

The reason why we don’t get involved in Black Friday

Shoppers grapple for televisions as they compete to purchase retail items during a “Black Friday” event on Nov. 23 at a store in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Paulo Whitaker / Reuters file

Countless discounts, crowded shops and endless consumption – that’s what you get every year on Black Friday. No other day of the year sees so much shopping. Many purchases are spontaneous and driven by “supposed” discounts – it is obvious that this is not exactly sustainable. At Wooden Amsterdam, we don’t want to support this consumer mania and have therefore introduced a counter-movement to Black Friday: the Green Weeks; which take place this year from the 4th of November until the 5th of December.

Our counter-movement: Green Weeks

Instead of polluting the environment due to the effects of impulsive purchases of often cheap, low-quality goods, do something good for it with us. With every purchase, we will plant an extra tree with the help of Trees for the Future during the period from 4th November to 5th December 2022. Buying from Wooden Amsterdam means giving something back to nature. By donating to reforestation projects such as this, not only is CO2 diminished, trees have numerous other benefits. They provide biodiversity, shade, food and economic development. But in the period around Black Friday, we want to give even more! While we can’t prevent Black Friday, we can lessen its impact with our counteraction.

Conscious consumption instead of a shopping spree

Conscious consumption is not only good for your wallet. Conscious buying decisions make you happy in the long run. Spontaneous purchases driven by discounts often turn out bad buys and are hardly enjoyable after a short time. Extremely low prices usually testify to inferior quality and poor working and production conditions.

Do something good for our planet and consciously choose sustainable, high-quality products. Purchase with an intention.

Our path to 1 million trees

Since 2017, we have been donating 1% of our annual turnover to reforestation NGOs. These include Trees 4 All, Trees for the Future. Parallelly, brands on our site such as Good&Mojo also plant trees with each lamp sold. Last year Green Weeks turned into 338 extra trees. Up until Q3 2022, we have donated 37.604 trees which roughly absorbed 238,4 tons of CO2 until now. That’s the equivalent of the carbon footprint of 26 people per year! These amazing figures motivate us to beat this mark.

Our goal is to donate one million trees by 2030, you can read more about it on our Sustainability page. Green Weeks are an essential part of achieving our milestone.

You can set an example

Will you help us make a statement against Black Friday? With a purchase at Wooden Amsterdam, you are doing something good for yourself and your environment. Step out from hasty overconsumption and opt-in for a sustainable lifestyle!

We focus on customer satisfaction

We want our customers to be satisfied. Therefore, it is our top priority to offer you unique, designed products with the highest quality possible under good working conditions. This way, you can enjoy our products for many years. In addition, our customer service is available for you from Monday to Friday from 9 am to 5 pm. You can return your order within 60 days of delivery and receive a 24-month guarantee.