Assam tea entrepreneur to launch ‘Anti Black Friday Sale' against ‘culture’ of impulse buying

Guwahati, Nov 23 (PTI) As global retailers slash prices for the annual ‘Black Friday’ sale, a tea entrepreneur in Assam’s Sivasagar district has decided to go against the tide, and launch a campaign to challenge what he calls the growing culture of impulse buying and “normalisation of waste”.

This year, ‘Woolah Tea’ is launching the ‘Anti Black Friday Sale - For the Planet’, where instead of offering discounts, it will increase prices, a deliberate stance against the culture of impulsive shopping, said founder Upamanyu Borkakoty.

He said ‘Woolah Tea’, known for its patented bagless tea technology, is firm in its resolve to advocate the significance of sustainability through the brand.

“‘Black Friday’ has become one of the world’s most aggressive symbols of consumption. Each year, prices fall, urgency rises and millions buy things they don’t need, simply because they are cheaper for a moment,” Borkakoty told PTI.

“What remains afterward is waste – unused products, discarded packaging and an economy built on disposability. ‘Woolah Tea’, a sustainability-led brand, is choosing a different path,” he said.

‘Woolah Tea’, owned by Sivasagar-based TTLT India Private Ltd, is “focused on creating authentic and pure tea, collaborating with a community of organic farmers, enterprising rural women and planet-positive practices”, he asserted.

If the question every ‘Black Friday’ sale asks is “How cheap can something be?”, ‘Woolah Tea’ proposes a different one: “What is the real cost of cheap?” said Vishal Bijlani, the head of marketing.

“Through the ‘Anti Black Friday Sale’ campaign, Woolah rejects a system that rewards excessive purchasing and disposability. The message is simple – If you need something, buy thoughtfully. If you don’t, don’t buy at all,” he said.

Alongside the campaign, ‘Woolah Tea’ is opening a public sign-up pledge for individuals, who want to stand against overconsumption and take part in a movement rooted in responsibility rather than the excess, said Amrita Acharjya, brand and communications manager.

“The pledge is not about buying. It is about shifting perspective, from extraction to stewardship. The ‘Anti Black Friday Sale’ is a refusal to normalise a culture that treats the planet as an endless resource. In essence, this ‘Black Friday’, we aren’t lowering prices, we are raising accountability,” Borkakoty said.

As part of the campaign, it is also launching a ‘10,000 Trees Project’, an ecological effort to grow 10,000 native saplings, in collaboration with Jadav Payeng, known as the ‘Forest Man of India’.

“Payeng’s work stands as living proof that restoration doesn’t need noise, it needs commitment. Over decades, he has grown an entire forest, tree by tree. His philosophy aligns deeply with the spirit of this campaign and Woolah’s core belief – regeneration is slow by design,” Borkakoty added.

For Chandrawali, a college teacher who shops online for most of her needs, such a campaign can help generate awareness on “mindful spending” among younger consumers.

“On many occasions, I have ended up buying stuff I could have done without. In such a scenario, a campaign to urge consumers to go for mindful spending is more than welcome,” Chandrawali added. PTI SSG RBT