BCG research has highlighted a transformation in the purchasing strategies of Italian consumers. In recent years, the Black Friday has become a historical event for Italians. However, this economic tradition is no longer sufficient to make people want to buy.

In fact, people have realized how the strategy of promotional offers works and how they can use these occasions to improve their financial conditions. BCG research has shown that trust has become the criterion by which consumers decide whether an offer deserves attention. This new geography of convenience has been told in the Year-End Sales Events Consumer Study 2026 of Boston Consulting Group, which involved 10,220 consumers in ten countries, including 1013 Italians. The research, presented also in the analysis of Year-End Sales Events, Trust Is the New Currency, highlights a transformation that goes beyond the holiday shopping season: price remains a formidable lever, but trust is becoming the criterion by which consumers decide whether an offer deserves attention.

The Black Friday continues to exert its charm, but the consumer who prepares to face it is less willing to be seduced by a red sticker. Check, compare, return to check; ask artificial intelligence for advice, but before handing over the wallet twice, it's worth thinking twice, and, particularly noteworthy for those who have announced the end of physical stores, continue to frequent online stores.

At this point, it is important to remember that Italians are concerned about the cost of living is not a discovery, rather, it is the measure with which this concern coexists with a still elevated propensity to make purchases. Eighty-five percent of respondents fear rising prices of essential goods, and eighty-one percent believe that inflation will continue to be felt, yet eighty-six percent expect to benefit from promotional events at the end of the year. A four-point decrease compared to 2025, the most marked decline among analyzed countries, but still above the international average.

In conclusion, while the Black Friday continues to be an economic phenomenon, the consumer strategy of trust is changing. This change could lead to new forms of shopping and help in managing consumers' finances.