What is Black Friday?

Video: The Independent's Personal Finance Editor explains Black Friday and why this American invention is becoming huge in the UK

People crowd the first floor of Macy's department store as they open at midnight (0500 GMT) on November 23, 2012 in New York to start the stores' 'Black Friday' shopping weekend. (STAN HONDA | AFP | Getty Images)

Like most modern retail ideas, Black Friday is an American import.

It is the day after Thanksgiving in the States and is the traditional start of the Christmas shopping period there.

The term has actually been around for more than 50 years but has really taken off in the last decade or so as American stores put on bigger and earlier sales to attract hordes of shoppers.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, sees bargain-hungry shoppers flood through shops in search for discounted goods on what is considered to be the most chaotic annual shopping day in the US.

In Britain we’ve had similar scenes on Boxing Day for years, but the notion of Black Friday has crept in over here in the last decade led by global internet retailers such as Amazon and Apple.

Watch the video to find out more about Black Friday both in the UK and the US.

Black Friday 2015 is on 27 November.