Shoppers claim home depot tricks customers with misleading holiday prices

In late November 2023, multiple shoppers accused Home Depot of deceptive pricing practices during its Black Friday sales. This allegation arose from a viral TikTok video, where a customer removed a holiday price sticker from an item only to reveal that the original price was identical. The video gained significant traction, racking up over a million views and stirring conversations about the authenticity of Black Friday deals. This incident is not isolated; other retailers, such as Target, have faced similar accusations in recent years, leading consumers to feel increasingly skeptical about the legitimacy of advertised sales. Many shoppers began to express their belief that Black Friday is a scam, arguing that they had found better deals on items prior to the holiday sales. The increased scrutiny on pricing tactics reflects a broader trend of consumer distrust towards retail practices, particularly during high-stakes shopping events. Experts have pointed out that retailers increasingly utilize sophisticated analytics to strategically set prices throughout the year, often reducing the scale of discounts traditionally associated with Black Friday. This shift raises concerns about the erosion of customer trust, as shoppers feel misled by inconsistent pricing. Such practices, while not easy to prove as false advertising, have led to a significant decline in consumer confidence regarding the value of discounts offered during these sales. Consequently, even as spending on Black Friday continues to grow, with Americans reportedly spending around $11 billion in 2023, the nature of retail promotions and the degree of genuine savings remain under intense public scrutiny.