[4 Dec Update – We’ve updated the article as the TikToker behind the video is from Connecticut and not from New York. We apologise for any confusion.]
Black Friday is usually a chance for shoppers to snag real deals before Christmas. But what if a store is secretly hiking up prices instead? That’s exactly what a Connecticut influencer says she uncovered in arts-and-crafts retailer Michaels, and her discovery has since gone viral.
With over 6.5 million views, almost 900k likes and over 25k comments, the fascinating video from TikToker @isitgay — also known as AJ — seems to have struck a chord. Although she’s best known for her arts-and-crafts and rabbit-centric content, her latest video takes a different turn, exposing what she claims are Michaels’ dubious Black Friday pricing tactics.
In it, we see the Connecticut influencer stood in a Michaels store aisle as she explains, “I have come across a Black Friday scam like no other in Michaels. I’m an avid Michaels shopper and I know prices. Let me show you some crazy [expletive]. I build winter villages, okay, with these houses.” She then proceeds to hold up a small wooden Bakery ornament to the camera. “I know the price. It’s $6.49 cents. I’ll include a picture.” Corroborating her claim, an image is shown that shows the exact same wooden Bakery ornament for sale for $6.49.
Going further, the influencer explains, “Now, these are 50% off today so I thought I was gonna come in here and get it for $3.20 cents. No. $12.99. It costs more today than it usually does.” Interestingly, she also notes in a caption, “Wasn’t in frame but there was a sticker price tag on there. Michaels usually has the price on the products tag.”
To help make things even clearer, the video cuts to her adding more context, saying, “What I meant is that it cost more on the Black Friday sale to buy it with the 50% off than it would to buy it on a regular day, okay. We all hear about items being marked up on Black Friday. No, it was costing more to buy it with the 50% off than it would on a regular price the week before.”
If that wasn’t enough, the eagle-eyed influencer goes even further, revealing other worrying details. First, she shows that items that were in the Black Friday sale have had the tag removed, while the items that were not in the sale did not have their tags removed. Adding insult to injury, she also points out that all the price check devices have been removed as well, even though they were allegedly working last week, and coupons were not allowed to be used at all during Black Friday sales. Not exactly a good look, right?
As the video picks up speed online, commenters are piling in, eager to voice their own opinions. On TikTok, one user who claimed to be a former employee at Michaels wrote, “I used to work at Michael’s, this is 100% how they operate.” A second chimed in with, “THIS is jouralism [sic]” while a third added, “It’s fraud in my book, they should be investigated“. Over on Reddit, one of the most up-voted comments read, “This is the type of REAL JOURNALISM I want“.
As The Daily Dot reports, Michaels has since issued the following official statement:
At Michaels, we take pricing integrity seriously and are not removing original price tags from any of our merchandise. Our standard approach is to have pricing for all products listed on the shelf, and to individually tag seasonal merchandise. We also feature prominent promotional signage throughout the store. In the event that a product is missing a price tag or the price of an item is unclear, our Team Members are happy to help clarify. With regard to the price of our DIY Villages Bakery, the regular price has always been $12.99. The price shown in the video on Google Search was the sale price at that time. The sale price at any given time is based off the current promotion.
Michaels Store representative via The Daily Dot
Suffice to say, it’s not a great look for the arts-and-crafts giant.
