When does Black Friday start? Four industries, one calendar
Before planning Black Friday 2026, we went back to 2025: every ad 68 Italian brands in fashion, beauty, pet and grocery launched from late September to mid-January, week by week. Who starts early, who shouts discounts, and who stays quiet — with German pet retail alongside for contrast.
What we found
- 0120 Oct
Beauty and fashion start three weeks early
The first ad in our Italian sets to name Black Friday launched on 20 Oct (Collistar, a newsletter preview). Fashion followed on 27 Oct with "early access" ads from Alo Yoga and Crime London — 494 fashion ads named the moment before the window even opened. Grocery waited until 5 Nov–6 Nov (Conad, then Eurospin).
- 0255%
Pet shouts, but does not spend more
Italian pet retailers named Black Friday in 54.5% of their window ads and used discount wording in 77.3% — the loudest of the four. Yet they launched 6.1% of their year in the window, just under an even pace.
- 031.5×
Fashion ramps; grocery carries on
Italian fashion launched ads at 1.51× its normal daily rate in the window and beauty at 1.35×; grocery (0.97×) and pet (0.97×) ran at business as usual. The quietest are the luxury names: Gucci, Prada, Golden Goose, Dior Beauty and Guerlain launched into the window without once naming it.
01The study
When does Black Friday actually start?
Every team planning Black Friday asks the same question in September: when do we need to be live? The honest answer depends on the category — and on whether you mean when brands start talking about it or when they start spending on it.
So we went back to last year. We took four Italian industries — fashion (31 brands, outerwear, luxury and sneakers together, each brand counted once), beauty (22), pet retail (4) and grocery (10 chains, plus Conad on its own) — and collected every ad each launched in the EU Meta Ad Library. German pet retail (5 brands) sits alongside as a contrast.
Two windows run through the study, and every block says which it uses. The timeline is ads launched week by week from 29 September 2025 to 11 January 2026. The year is ads launched from 29 September 2025 to 28 September 2026, which lets us ask what share of a whole year of advertising each industry put into the Black Friday window itself — 10 November to 2 December 2025, 23 days, or 6.3% of a year at an even pace.
03At a glance
Four industries, side by side
Ads launched in the year (29 Sep 2025 – 28 Sep 2026) and in the Black Friday window (10 Nov – 2 Dec 2025). Pace compares the daily launch rate in the window with the industry's own yearly average. First "Black Friday" ad is the earliest launch whose copy names it, in the timeline window. Names it, discount wording and video share are for Black Friday-window ads; the copy columns are estimates.
| Industry | Brands | Ads, 12 months | Black Friday ads | Share of year | Pace | First "Black Friday" ad | Names it | Discount wording | Video share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fashion | 31 | 31,716 | 3,022 | 9.5% | 1.51× | 27 Oct | 37.5% | 37.4% | 28.4% |
| Beauty | 22 | 19,216 | 1,638 | 8.5% | 1.35× | 20 Oct | 24.9% | 43.8% | 48.0% |
| Pet · Italy | 4 | 3,229 | 198 | 6.1% | 0.97× | 1 Nov | 54.5% | 77.3% | 32.8% |
| Grocery (ex-Conad) | 10 | 11,028 | 677 | 6.1% | 0.97× | 6 Nov | 10.9% | 39.1% | 36.5% |
| Conad | 1 | 41,402 | 2,920 | 7.1% | 1.12× | 5 Nov | 5.9% | 42.4% | 32.9% |
| Grocery incl. Conad | 11 | 52,430 | 3,597 | 6.9% | 1.09× | 5 Nov | 6.9% | 41.8% | 33.6% |
| Pet · Germany | 5 | 7,011 | 719 | 10.3% | 1.63× | 11 Nov | 15.9% | 62.7% | 42.8% |
Three different games. Fashion and beauty start the conversation in October and add volume in the window. Pet talks about Black Friday more than anyone but does not add volume. Grocery barely changes at all — with or without Conad, the flyer keeps its weekly rhythm.
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- 32,580 ads
- 73 brands
- Methodology
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04Fashion
Fashion starts early and ramps hardest
31 Italian fashion brands — outerwear, luxury and premium sneakers, each counted once. Share of year uses the 12-month window; the rest describe the Black Friday window.
Only 14 of 31 brands named Black Friday in any window ad. Copy figures are estimates.
05Fashion
Fashion, brand by brand
Sorted by ads launched in the 12-month window. Black Friday-window columns are marked low-n where a brand launched fewer than 10 ads in the window.
| Brand | Ads, 12 months | Black Friday ads | Share of year | Pace vs own year | First "Black Friday" ad | Names it | Discount wording | Video share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alo Yoga | 6,802 | 595 | 8.7% | 1.39× | 27 Oct | 42% | 25% | 41% |
| Skims | 3,712 | 487 | 13.1% | 2.08× | 19 Nov | 79% | 79% | 36% |
| Golden Goose | 2,888 | 71 | 2.5% | 0.39× | — | 0% | 0% | 31% |
| True Classic | 2,465 | 645 | 26.2% | 4.15× | 1 Nov | 47% | 52% | 24% |
| Nike | 1,614 | 59 | 3.7% | 0.58× | — | 0% | 76% | 19% |
| Autry | 1,422 | 128 | 9.0% | 1.43× | — | 0% | 0% | 41% |
| Gucci | 1,288 | 69 | 5.4% | 0.85× | — | 0% | 0% | 1% |
| Jacquemus | 1,221 | 100 | 8.2% | 1.30× | — | 0% | 0% | 15% |
| Prada | 1,167 | 81 | 6.9% | 1.10× | — | 0% | 0% | 26% |
| P448 | 906 | 128 | 14.1% | 2.24× | 10 Nov | 51% | 50% | 13% |
| ECOALF | 743 | 66 | 8.9% | 1.41× | 24 Nov | 8% | 9% | 18% |
| Ghoud | 717 | 27 | 3.8% | 0.60× | — | 0% | 11% | 0% |
| PANGAIA | 698 | 31 | 4.4% | 0.70× | 1 Dec | 13% | 19% | 48% |
| Voile Blanche | 691 | 55 | 8.0% | 1.26× | — | 53% | 53% | 25% |
| Canada Goose | 592 | 47 | 7.9% | 1.26× | — | 0% | 0% | 28% |
| Hogan | 545 | 52 | 9.5% | 1.51× | — | 0% | 0% | 40% |
| Philippe Model | 425 | 45 | 10.6% | 1.68× | 17 Nov | 60% | 62% | 29% |
| Premiata | 425 | 16 | 3.8% | 0.60× | — | 0% | 0% | 31% |
| Herno | 412 | 47 | 11.4% | 1.81× | — | 0% | 0% | 45% |
| Santoni | 409 | 46 | 11.2% | 1.78× | — | 0% | 0% | 17% |
| Moncler | 378 | 28 | 7.4% | 1.18× | — | 0% | 0% | 11% |
| MOA Concept | 355 | 13 | 3.7% | 0.58× | 21 Nov | 85% | 85% | 0% |
| K-Way | 319 | 7 | 2.2% | 0.35× | — | low-n | low-n | low-n |
| Colmar | 276 | 50 | 18.1% | 2.87× | 3 Nov | 34% | 30% | 2% |
| Crime London | 252 | 33 | 13.1% | 2.08× | 27 Oct | 85% | 85% | 0% |
| Save the Duck | 247 | 31 | 12.6% | 1.99× | 23 Nov | 6% | 3% | 13% |
| Woolrich | 246 | 44 | 17.9% | 2.84× | 24 Nov | 14% | 25% | 16% |
| Napapijri | 244 | 12 | 4.9% | 0.78× | 18 Nov | 42% | 75% | 17% |
| Loewe | 191 | 8 | 4.2% | 0.66× | — | low-n | low-n | low-n |
| Candice Cooper | 40 | 0 | 0.0% | 0.00× | — | low-n | low-n | low-n |
| Stokton | 26 | 1 | 3.8% | 0.61× | — | low-n | low-n | low-n |
The loud end is performance-led: Skims named Black Friday in 79% of its window ads, and True Classic put 26% of its whole year into the window (4.15× its own pace). The quiet end is luxury — Gucci, Prada, Jacquemus, Moncler, Golden Goose and Loewe launched into the window without naming it once. Colmar and Woolrich are the outerwear brands that lean in hardest, each putting around 18% of the year into the window.
06Beauty
Beauty announces first, and discounts without saying why
22 Italian beauty brands, mass to prestige. Share of year uses the 12-month window; the rest describe the Black Friday window.
Beauty discounts in far more ads than it names the moment: discount wording 43.8% vs naming 24.9%. Both are estimates. Video share in the window is 48.0%, the highest of the four industries.
07Beauty
Beauty, brand by brand
Sorted by ads launched in the 12-month window. Black Friday-window columns are marked low-n where a brand launched fewer than 10 ads in the window.
| Brand | Ads, 12 months | Black Friday ads | Share of year | Pace vs own year | First "Black Friday" ad | Names it | Discount wording | Video share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bottega Verde | 4,660 | 385 | 8.3% | 1.31× | 14 Nov | 2% | 69% | 49% |
| Clarins | 2,192 | 194 | 8.9% | 1.40× | 3 Nov | 61% | 30% | 54% |
| Garnier | 1,618 | 37 | 2.3% | 0.36× | — | 0% | 0% | 46% |
| La Roche-Posay | 1,283 | 142 | 11.1% | 1.76× | — | 0% | 0% | 73% |
| Charlotte Tilbury | 1,146 | 92 | 8.0% | 1.27× | — | 0% | 84% | 16% |
| YSL Beauty | 870 | 118 | 13.6% | 2.15× | 5 Nov | 19% | 17% | 39% |
| Dior Beauty | 858 | 44 | 5.1% | 0.81× | — | 0% | 0% | 93% |
| Equilibra | 799 | 59 | 7.4% | 1.17× | 14 Nov | 47% | 47% | 31% |
| Wycon Cosmetics | 724 | 70 | 9.7% | 1.53× | 7 Nov | 59% | 64% | 9% |
| Guerlain | 703 | 75 | 10.7% | 1.69× | — | 0% | 0% | 75% |
| Armani beauty | 612 | 65 | 10.6% | 1.69× | 20 Nov | 43% | 54% | 60% |
| SHISEIDO | 523 | 18 | 3.4% | 0.55× | 3 Nov | 11% | 83% | 0% |
| CeraVe Skincare | 495 | 14 | 2.8% | 0.45× | — | 0% | 0% | 57% |
| Collistar | 476 | 100 | 21.0% | 3.33× | 20 Oct | 75% | 87% | 42% |
| NIVEA | 412 | 10 | 2.4% | 0.39× | — | 0% | 0% | 40% |
| Diego dalla Palma Milano | 412 | 47 | 11.4% | 1.81× | 10 Nov | 34% | 19% | 51% |
| Kiko Milano | 306 | 51 | 16.7% | 2.64× | 14 Nov | 84% | 84% | 55% |
| PUPA Milano Italy | 294 | 17 | 5.8% | 0.92× | 23 Nov | 41% | 41% | 82% |
| NABLA Cosmetics | 286 | 54 | 18.9% | 3.00× | — | 19% | 28% | 15% |
| Maybelline New York | 271 | 18 | 6.6% | 1.05× | — | 0% | 0% | 67% |
| Rougj | 166 | 16 | 9.6% | 1.53× | 3 Nov | 50% | 81% | 25% |
| Deborah Milano | 110 | 12 | 10.9% | 1.73× | — | 0% | 0% | 75% |
Collistar is the early mover and the heaviest spender, with 21% of its year in the window (3.33× its own pace) and a first "Black Friday" ad on 20 October. Charlotte Tilbury and Bottega Verde show the other beauty habit: discount wording in most window ads, while naming the moment in few or none. Dior Beauty, Guerlain, La Roche-Posay and Garnier never name it.
08Pet · Italy
Pet shouts, but does not spend more
4 Italian pet retailers. Share of year uses the 12-month window; the rest describe the Black Friday window.
Arcaplanet also ran its own "Black Weekend" (an 11+11 double discount) from 10 October — before its first ad naming Black Friday itself. Copy figures are estimates.
09Pet · Italy
Pet · Italy, brand by brand
Sorted by ads launched in the 12-month window. Robinson Pet Shop launched fewer than 10 window ads and is marked low-n.
| Brand | Ads, 12 months | Black Friday ads | Share of year | Pace vs own year | First "Black Friday" ad | Names it | Discount wording | Video share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arcaplanet | 1,762 | 77 | 4.4% | 0.69× | 1 Nov | 56% | 74% | 34% |
| Zooplus | 918 | 83 | 9.0% | 1.43× | 7 Nov | 64% | 84% | 39% |
| L'Isola dei Tesori | 419 | 29 | 6.9% | 1.10× | 19 Nov | 41% | 90% | 10% |
| Robinson Pet Shop | 130 | 9 | 6.9% | 1.10× | — | low-n | low-n | low-n |
Zooplus is the only Italian pet retailer that clearly ramps (1.43× its own pace). Arcaplanet, the category's biggest advertiser, runs its Black Friday at 0.69× its normal pace — promotional in tone all year, so the moment changes the words more than the volume.
10Pet · Germany
In Germany, pet starts late and ramps hard
5 German pet retailers — a contrast, not part of the Italian totals. Share of year uses the 12-month window; the rest describe the Black Friday window.
German copy is matched on German discount wording (Rabatt, Angebot, sparen) as well as Black Friday / Black Week. Estimates.
11Pet · Germany
Pet · Germany, brand by brand
Sorted by ads launched in the 12-month window.
| Brand | Ads, 12 months | Black Friday ads | Share of year | Pace vs own year | First "Black Friday" ad | Names it | Discount wording | Video share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fressnapf Deutschland | 2,896 | 270 | 9.3% | 1.48× | 27 Nov | 26% | 47% | 27% |
| Pets Deli | 1,816 | 158 | 8.7% | 1.38× | — | 0% | 64% | 95% |
| Zooplus | 1,059 | 232 | 21.9% | 3.48× | 11 Nov | 13% | 84% | 25% |
| Das Futterhaus | 744 | 35 | 4.7% | 0.75× | — | 37% | 71% | 34% |
| Dehner | 496 | 24 | 4.8% | 0.77× | — | 0% | 8% | 71% |
Zooplus put 21.9% of its German year into the window (3.48× its own pace). The German market names Black Friday far less than Italian pet (15.9% vs 54.5%) but spends into it far more.
12Grocery (ex-Conad)
Grocery barely notices
10 Italian grocery chains, excluding Conad. Share of year uses the 12-month window; the rest describe the Black Friday window.
With Conad included, grocery puts 6.9% of its year into the window and names Black Friday in 6.9% of window ads. Conad alone: 41,402 ads in the year, 7.1% in the window, first "Black Friday" ad on 5 Nov.
13Grocery
Grocery, brand by brand
Sorted by ads launched in the 12-month window. Conad is shown last, apart from the ex-Conad totals.
| Brand | Ads, 12 months | Black Friday ads | Share of year | Pace vs own year | First "Black Friday" ad | Names it | Discount wording | Video share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Esselunga | 3,400 | 51 | 1.5% | 0.24× | — | 18% | 49% | 73% |
| Lidl Italia | 1,925 | 129 | 6.7% | 1.06× | — | 18% | 39% | 34% |
| Eurospin | 1,146 | 144 | 12.6% | 1.99× | 6 Nov | 11% | 38% | 28% |
| PENNY Italia | 1,141 | 69 | 6.0% | 0.96× | — | 3% | 43% | 51% |
| MD | 1,029 | 86 | 8.4% | 1.33× | 18 Nov | 6% | 36% | 22% |
| Bennet | 910 | 69 | 7.6% | 1.20× | 7 Nov | 14% | 62% | 30% |
| Carrefour Italia | 407 | 62 | 15.2% | 2.42× | 16 Nov | 8% | 34% | 37% |
| Coop | 388 | 29 | 7.5% | 1.19× | — | 0% | 0% | 45% |
| ALDI Italia | 373 | 36 | 9.7% | 1.53× | 19 Nov | 11% | 28% | 39% |
| Pam Panorama | 309 | 2 | 0.6% | 0.10× | — | low-n | low-n | low-n |
| Conad | 41,402 | 2,920 | 7.1% | 1.12× | 5 Nov | 6% | 42% | 33% |
Grocery's discount wording (39.1%) is its normal flyer voice, not a Black Friday one. Eurospin named it first, for its online store, on 6 Nov; Carrefour ramps hardest (2.42× its own pace). Esselunga — grocery's biggest advertiser after Conad — put just 1.5% of its year into the window.
14What next
Planning Black Friday 2026
Who starts early: beauty and fashion. The first ads naming Black Friday launched on 20 October (beauty) and 27 October (fashion), mostly as "early access" and newsletter sign-ups. If you are in either category and your first Black Friday ad goes live in the window itself, you are three weeks behind the conversation.
Who shouts discounts: Italian pet retail names the moment in over half its window ads and talks price in three quarters of them — but does not add volume. Beauty talks price more than it names the moment. Grocery talks price all year.
Who stays quiet: luxury, in both fashion and beauty. Gucci, Prada, Golden Goose, Dior Beauty and Guerlain are all in market in the window and none of them say why. That silence is a position — and in categories where half the field is shouting, it is also a gap.
Each industry has its own deeper study in the Data Room: Outerwear in Italy, Four fashion markets, Premium sneakers in Italy, and Pet retail and grocery. This page is the calendar that sits above them.
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Premium sneakers — Italy · Always-on · Sep 2025 – Sep 2026 · 9 min read
How this was built
Set: Save the Duck, K-Way, Herno, Colmar, Woolrich, Moncler, PANGAIA, ECOALF, Canada Goose, Napapijri, Jacquemus, Loewe, Prada, Skims, Alo Yoga, True Classic, Nike, Gucci, Autry, Golden Goose, P448, Philippe Model, MOA Concept, Premiata, Hogan, Crime London, Ghoud, Voile Blanche, Santoni, Candice Cooper, Stokton, Garnier, Clarins, Bottega Verde, La Roche-Posay, Dior Beauty, YSL Beauty, Equilibra, Wycon Cosmetics, Guerlain, NIVEA, Armani beauty, SHISEIDO, Collistar, CeraVe Skincare, Diego dalla Palma Milano, Kiko Milano, Maybelline New York, PUPA Milano Italy, NABLA Cosmetics, Rougj, Deborah Milano, Charlotte Tilbury, Arcaplanet, Zooplus, L'Isola dei Tesori, Robinson Pet Shop, Lidl Italia, Esselunga, Eurospin, PENNY Italia, MD, Coop, Carrefour Italia, ALDI Italia, Bennet, Pam Panorama, Conad, Fressnapf Deutschland (DE), Das Futterhaus (DE), Zooplus (DE), Dehner (DE), Pets Deli (DE). Window: 29 September 2025 – 11 January 2026. Source: Meta Ad Library (EU).
Ads were collected from the public Meta Ad Library for the EU, from the page we resolved as each brand's own. Fashion combines three tracked sets (Italian outerwear, best-in-class fashion, premium sneakers) with each brand counted once. Arcaplanet is counted under pet only; Decathlon is excluded from grocery; Conad is reported separately from the grocery totals.
The timeline counts ads launched per week (Monday to Sunday) from 29 September 2025 to 11 January 2026; weeks that overlap 10 November – 2 December are highlighted. Share of the year uses ads launched 29 September 2025 – 28 September 2026; the 6.3% baseline is 23 days of 365. Pace is an industry's (or brand's) daily launch rate in the window divided by its daily rate across that year.
"First Black Friday ad" is the earliest launch date, in the timeline window, of an ad whose text or headline contains "Black Friday". "Names it" also counts Black Week, Black Weekend and Cyber. Discount wording matches sale, discount and percentage-off language in Italian, English and German. All copy statistics are regular-expression estimates.
Counts are ads — deployments — not distinct creatives. Paula's Choice and The Ordinary are excluded from beauty because their collected ads start after the window opened.
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