People who enjoy shopping online might take some extra time on Nov. 28 looking for good deals on Christmas gifts.
That date marks the 18th anniversary of Cyber Monday. It’s an event during which retailers that engage in e-commerce typically offer special sales and promotions aimed at achieving impressive online revenue.
The National Retail Federation is credited with creating the phrase “Cyber Monday” in 2005, an nbcnews.com article stated. In a news release, the federation declared that Cyber Monday described a trend that it noticed had occurred over a few previous years: Online revenue and shopping activity consistently spiked on the Monday following Thanksgiving.
It didn’t take long before Cyber Monday joined Black Friday as a universally recognized special day of the Christmas shopping season.
Locally, two Madison area businesses have plotted their strategies for success during the official observance 2022 Cyber Monday. However, at both places, Cyber Monday specials are a continuation of deals that kicked off on or before Black Friday.
Video Game Nirvana, located at 4 W. Main St. in Madison Village, is offering 10 percent off all of its video games and accessories from Black Friday, Nov. 25, through Cyber Monday, Nov. 28. The discount covers in-store and online purchases.
In addition, the store has marked sale prices on specific video games and related items, which are listed on the Video Game Nirvana Facebook page.
For customers who shop online, Video Game Nirvana owner R.J. Lukacs said his store’s costs for shipping packages are very reasonable because he uses the Pirate Ship program. Pirate Ship is a service that provides deeply discounted rates for shipping packages through the United States Postal Service and United Parcel Service.
In addition, Lukacs said he will text or email photos, along with prices, of Video Game Nirvana merchandise to customers before they decide to make a purchase.
“If they’re looking for, like, a Wii game, I’ll send them pictures of all the Wii games I have,” he said.
Video Game Nirvana, which Lukacs opened in 2020, also buys and accepts trade-ins of video games and accessories.
Lukacs said he’s gotten good response from online shoppers during the first two years that Video Game Nirvana has offered Cyber Monday specials.
Meanwhile, NutriFit, a Madison Township business, is running a Black Friday sale that started Nov. 21 — the Monday before Thanksgiving — and runs through Cyber Monday on Nov. 28.
Located at 2573 Walter Green Commons Drive, Nutrifit specializes in the sale of nutritional supplements and vitamins.
During its holiday sale, NutriFit is offering 15 percent off all of its products, owner Shawn Sprafka said. Those deals apply to in-store or online transactions, he added.
NutriFit also will provide a variety of perks or free extra products for customers who spend certain designated amounts on their orders.
“It’s kind of like a tiered discount,” Sprafka said.
In addition, manufacturers of certain merchandise stocked at NutrFit are offering free bonus items to customers who buy a set number of their products during the eight-day sale.
Sprafka, who has operated his independently owned the NutriFit store for nearly six years, said Black Friday traditionally is the shop’s biggest day of the Christmas shopping season.
“And Cyber Monday is usually the second busiest day, just because we send out marketing details saying like, ‘Hey, this is your last chance to take advantage of our (Black Friday week) deals.’ ” he said.
