Why We're Not Taking Part In Black Friday

Why We're Not Taking Part In Black Friday

Black Friday is everywhere at this time of year! With big retailers slashing all their prices, inboxes fill up with discount codes, and there’s an increasing pressure to shop fast and shop hard for the festive season. However for many small, independent businesses like us at Innabox, Black Friday simply doesn’t work in a way that’s kind, sustainable, or fair.

This year, we’re choosing to opt out, and we want to explain why that is.

This isn’t about lecturing anyone on how to shop but to share the realities behind running a small business. Especially one built on illustrating thoughtful products that support the chronic illness and neurodivergent communities, created by humans with disabilities.

 

1. Black Friday Harms Small Businesses Like Ours!

Huge corporations can afford huge discounts because their products are mass produced at an extremely low cost, often unethically. Small businesses simply can’t compete with these discounts without taking a financial hit.

When indie makers join the race to the bottom, it often means being paid far below the value of their time, skills, creativity, and labour. Black Friday encourages customers to expect big discounts everywhere, making it harder for small creators to survive.

By choosing not to take part, we're aiming to protect the integrity of our work and help shift the focus back to mindful and sustainable shopping. And to reduce this pressure put on other small businesses to take part.

 

2. Deep Discounts Devalue the Work Behind Handmade Products

Every Innabox pin, sticker, card, lanyard, and character design is created with an intention, from a heartfelt story or drawn from trauma. From illustrations that uplift neurodivergent and chronically ill people, to packaging orders by hand, there’s so much behind what we make!

Large discounts can push the thought that handmade goods should be cheaper, which isn’t fair to the creators who pour time and emotional energy into every item. Keeping our prices consistent helps reflect the genuine value of our work.

 

3. Fast Shopping Creates Fast Burnout

Black Friday is designed to trigger impulse buying… often followed by regret! That doesn’t fit with our ethos at all, in fact it feels quite icky. We value slow, mindful and joyful shopping, where you choose pieces that will actually be loved, appreciated and hopefully used for years.

We want our items to make people smile, feel seen, and feel represented. It shouldn’t be a regrettable or pushy guilt ridden sale that's made you feel like you have to purchase.

 

4. Our Products Are Created With Care, Not Mass-Produced for Quick Sales

We’re a very tiny team! With Nikky behind the helm designing, illustrating, creating, shipping and more. We create everything in smaller batches to maintain our high quality and accessibility. Black Friday encourages an unrealistic turnaround on shipping times that puts pressure on artists and makers, often leading to burnout during the busiest time of the year. This is something we strive to not to! 

Instead, we encourage customers to shop early, shop directly, and shop mindfully. It helps us keep up with production, pack with care, and send orders out with love instead of stress.

Our guaranteed Christmas shipping deadline for UK orders this year is the 10th of December! 

 

Don’t Worry… We Still Offer Value All Year Round!

We totally understand wanting to get the most out of your money, especially when many in our community are disabled, chronically ill, or on lower incomes.

That’s why we offer various bundles and deals all year round:

Three Innabox enamel pins shown on backing card on a red background. Choose from any three pins. Enamel pins designed to raise awareness for chronic illnesses

3 x Enamel Pins Bundle

 

Flat lay of the full Antxiety bundle by Innabox on a teal background with stars, featuring four items: a collectable trading card with an anxious anteater character, a grey Antxiety plush toy holding its face, a matching hard enamel pin on a blue backing card, and a vinyl sticker of the same character. Handwritten arrows and text point to each item, highlighting “collectable card,” “plush toy,” “sticker,” and “enamel pin.”

Antxiety Anteater Plush Toy Bundle - Anxiety

 

Photo of three Innabox Neurodivergent Collectable Trading Cards on a bold red and teal burst background. Featuring the ADHD ferret, Anxiety anteater, and Autism pug characters. A fun and colourful illustrated card bundle designed to raise awareness and uplift those with hidden disabilities and chronic illness.

Neurodivergent Collectable Trading Cards - Set of 3 Discount Bundle

 

 

⭐ Shop all our bundles here!  ⭐

 

 

⭐ Free ways to support us:

  • Liking, sharing, and commenting on social media posts
  • Spreading the word to friends & family
  • Leaving reviews for products purchased
  • Visiting us at markets

 


Mindful Shopping > Black Friday Chaos

Choosing not to take part in Black Friday allows us to stay true to our values: kindness, accessibility, creativity, and community care. When you shop small, every purchase directly supports a real human, not a faceless corporation!


Thank You for Supporting Innabox

Whether you buy from us, share our posts, comment, or simply enjoy the artwork we create, your support means the world. You help us keep designing colourful, uplifting products that celebrate neurodivergence and invisible disabilities.

If you’re shopping this season, thank you for choosing to shop small, shop slow, and shop mindfully. 🎄🫂💖

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