Some analysts are convinced that Mexico is still in the grip of economic malaise but that didn’t concern thousands of Tapatios who took full advantage of discounts and offers in last weekend’s “El Buen Fin,” this country’s answer to “Black Friday.”
The rush to the shops caused traffic jams in several parts of the Guadalajara metropolitan area on Saturday and Sunday, including the downtown core, as well as avenidas Lazaro Cardenas and Lopez Mateos. Streets bordering shopping malls, in particular Galerias Mall, Gran Plaza, Plaza del Sol and Forum Tlaquepaque, were clogged for much of the weekend, especially in the afternoons.
Business leaders had warned that the sluggish economy might put a dampener on this year’s Buen Fin. They predicted that consumers would be more prudent with their cash this year, and be reluctant to run up significant credit card debt.
The lure of discounts of 50 percent and interest-free payments of up to two years proved too enticing for many shoppers, however. On Monday, as the four-day spending binge came to an end, the Guadalajara Business Chamber announced that sales were likely to be up by around 20 percent from last year, despite their original pessimistic forecast.Later that day, Jorge Davila Flores, president of Mexico’s Confederation of the National Chambers of Commerce (Concanaco), estimated nationwide sales for the four-day weekend to be around 160 billion pesos, or 12.2 billion dollars – up ten percent from last year’s figure of 149 billion pesos.
Around 300,000 businesses signed on to El Buen Fin, according to Concanaco. In Guadalajara, 2,500 outlets took part, many of them in the 18 commercial malls, that were packed throughout the four days.
According to initial reports, the most favored purchases were televisions, computer gadgetry, sound equipment and clothes and shoes.
According to Davila, the “star” item of the weekend was a 32-inch Phillips smart television priced at 3,799 pesos.
During the four days of the program, the website www.elbuenfin.org received 1.5 million hits.