Why would 30,000 Americans pay $6 for a box of bull poop? According to the marketing material of one company that sold bull poop on Black Friday, you could “fertilize your garden, adorn a festive tree, or surprise a loved one with the gift of poop.”
Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving in the US and is a time when stores across the country have big sales. Since 2005, it has been the biggest shopping day of the year in the US. In recent years, the heavily promoted commercial holiday has been gaining steam internationally, spreading to over 30 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Latvia.
Thanksgiving in the US is a holiday where families get together and spend quality time with each other. Black Friday is 100% commercialism, and some people think it is getting out of hand. Recently there have been some negative reactions to the shopping madness.
A card game company called Cards Against Humanity had the ultimate anti-Black Friday sale in 2013. They took their card game off the website and replaced it with boxes of bull poop labeled “Bullshit” and sold it for six bucks a pop. They ended up selling 30,000 boxes of poop and making $180,000 in one day.
Even though the company was very clear about exactly what they were selling, many people peppered them with questions about what was really in the boxes they were selling. Company co-founder Max Temkin’s reply on Twitter was priceless. “If you buy the poop expecting it to be something else that’s not poop, you’re actually buying a valuable life lesson for $6.”
In 2013, instead of discounting their product like almost every other US store does on Black Friday, they raised their price by $5.
Temkin says he hates Black Friday. In 2015, his anti-Black Friday sale was even more audacious. He sold nothing. It wasn’t even a box containing nothing. It was actually nothing.
It wasn’t some tricky scam either. Here is what they wrote in their Nothing Sale FAQ:
If I give you $5, will I actually get anything in exchange?
We’re so glad you asked! No.
Why are you selling nothing?
On Black Friday, everybody is selling something. We’re the only company to offer the superior Black Friday experience of buying nothing.
At the end of the day, they sold $71,145 of nothing.
The company’s true intentions behind its unique Black Friday promotions are certainly up for interpretation. Whether they are trying to make a statement, just make a quick buck, or just have a laugh, their box of BS certainly makes news.
To their credit, Cards Against Humanity has a history of giving millions to charity. In 2014, they sent their Black Friday Bull poop profits to an NGO that provides cows to developing countries. In 2015, they decided to be a little selfish. They gave the nothing sale profits to their employees.
References:
https://www.cardsagainsthumanity.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Friday_%28shopping%29
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/11/black-friday-backlash/417588/
https://www.vox.com/2015/11/28/11620980/cards-against-humanity-sells-nothing-for-71000-on-black-friday
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/cards-humanity-game-sells-30-000-boxes-real-poop-article-1.2047198
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/cards-against-humanity-sold-nothing-and-made-thousands_n_565c98d0e4b08e945febecec
https://techcrunch.com/2015/11/27/cards-against-humanity-has-made-over-54k-selling-nothing-on-black-friday/#.bhlsbwc:Iiwx
Why would 30,000 Americans pay $6 for a box of poop? According to one company that sold it on Black Friday, you could “…surprise a loved one with the gift of poop.”
Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving in the US and is a time when stores have big sales. Since 2005, it has been the biggest shopping day of the year in the US. In recent years, the holiday has been gaining steam internationally. It is in more than 30 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Latvia.
Thanksgiving in the US is a holiday where families get together. Black Friday is 100% commercialism, and some people think it is getting out of hand.
A card game company called Cards Against Humanity had an anti-Black Friday sale in 2013. They took their card game off the website and replaced it with boxes of bull poop, and sold it for six bucks a pop. They ended up selling 30,000 boxes of poop and making $180,000 in one day.
Many people asked them what was really in the boxes they were selling. Company co-founder Max Temkin gave a clear answer. “If you buy the poop expecting it to be something else that’s not poop, you’re actually buying a valuable life lesson for $6.”
In 2013, instead of lowering their price on Black Friday, they raised their price by $5.
Temkin says he hates Black Friday. In 2015, his anti-Black Friday sale was even crazier. He sold nothing. It wasn’t even a box containing nothing. It was actually nothing.
It wasn’t a trick. Here is what they wrote in their Nothing Sale FAQ:
If I give you $5, what will I get?
We’re so glad you asked! No.
Why are you selling nothing?
On Black Friday, everybody is selling something. We’re the only company to offer the superior Black Friday experience of buying nothing.
At the end of the day, they sold $71,145 of nothing.
Whether they are trying to make a statement, make a quick buck, or just have a laugh is unclear. Whatever the case, their Black Friday sales make news.
To their credit, Cards Against Humanity has a history of giving millions to charity. In 2014, they sent their Black Friday Bull poop profits to an NGO that gives cows to developing countries.
References:
https://www.cardsagainsthumanity.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Friday_%28shopping%29
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/11/black-friday-backlash/417588/
https://www.vox.com/2015/11/28/11620980/cards-against-humanity-sells-nothing-for-71000-on-black-friday
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/cards-humanity-game-sells-30-000-boxes-real-poop-article-1.2047198
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/cards-against-humanity-sold-nothing-and-made-thousands_n_565c98d0e4b08e945febecec
https://techcrunch.com/2015/11/27/cards-against-humanity-has-made-over-54k-selling-nothing-on-black-friday/#.bhlsbwc:Iiwx
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