The Myth of Black Friday

Warren Buffett famously said: “Price is what you pay; value is what you get.”

On this Thanksgiving eve, I thought we would reflect on the most important of traditions – Black Friday! 😆 I often use sales in class as a way to teach students the difference between price and value.

If you’re excited for Black Friday… but terrified when stocks go on sale… we need to talk.

Consumers celebrate when a $1,000 TV drops to $600. 🏷️But when a great company trades at a 40% discount to its intrinsic value? People run the other way!

Meanwhile, studies show most Black Friday deals aren’t even real — the product has been the same price all year. But in markets, when quality names actually do get marked down during a selloff, most investors freeze. What does this teach us? The stock market definitely doesn’t have the same PR machine that Amazon does! 😆

Black Friday hype also teaches us something about valuation psychology:

⚓ False anchoring distorts perceived value

😨 Scarcity/urgency trigger bad decisions (think FOMO)

🛍️ “% off” doesn’t always mean “good deal”

Whether you’re shopping or investing, the real skill is knowing the difference between a discount and a distraction. This season, try to ignore the noise — in the markets and in the malls. Focus on value, not marketing.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving all!! 🦃🍂