I worked at Boots and have picked the best deals to shop this Black Friday

24 November 2023 , 09:30

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Shoppers can get all of this for £80 with Boots' latest money-saving beauty box - worth nearly £330

Black Friday is officially here and retailers are battling it out to offer the best deals on the high street. For me, Boots is one of the best places to shop the major money-saving event, because it's a one-stop health and beauty emporium where you can get exclusives, huge savings and of course, the benefit of Advantage Card points, which makes their offers all the more tempting if there's a product the same price elsewhere.

When it comes to shopping the Boots Black Friday sale, I'll admit, I do have a bit of an advantage. Because I used to work for the retailer, I know exactly where to look for the best deals in order to be the first to snap them up. But I won't gatekeep my secrets.

As an ex-Boots employee, I've taken a look at today's Black Friday deals and picked out the best ones to get more bang for your buck, including beauty bumper packs that will save you over £200 on makeup and skincare, fragrance deals for every member of your family, Star Gifts with better-than-half-price-savings and No7 offers that aren't to be missed.

There's also deals on major brands like Clinique, Dyson, Shark, MAC and more, so get your credit or debit card at the ready because it's likely that some of these will sell out over the weekend. Ready?

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Beauty boxes

• - £80 worth £328

• Winter Skincare Edit gift set - £24.99 worth £144

• - £45 worth £130

Beauty boxes are, without doubt, one of the best beauty investments you can make because they are usually worth so much more than the price you pay. Boots has really led the charge with their seasonal and themed money-saving offerings this year, and we have it on good authority that they’ll be continuing in 2024, too.

Boots Beauty Box is back for 2023 - but you'll need to be fast (Boots)

Among the best ones to shop this Black Friday is the , which sold out last year. Launching as part of the high street favourite’s popular 'Star Gifts', which often give shoppers savings of over half price, the contains from brands including NARS, Too Faced, Fenty, Huda Beauty, Sol De Janeiro and more, with 10 of them being full sized.

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Available exclusively online, the comes in at £80, but its contents are worth £328.43 in total, essentially getting you £248.43 worth of items for free. One of the products inside, the is worth £50 alone, while the has a £48 price tag, exceeding the price you pay for the box in just two products.

If that doesn’t take your fancy, how about over £140 worth of skincare for under £25? The Boots Winter Skincare Edit gift set couldn’t have come at a better time. With the cold snap wreaking havoc on shoppers’ skin, the health and beauty retailer has come to the rescue with a seasonal remedy in the form of a curated selection of winter skincare essentials.

It costs £29.99, but shoppers who use the code WINTERSKIN5 this Black Friday can get it for £24.99. It’s worth £144, with seven of the 10 products inside being full-sized, many from brands we all know and love, such as No7, Bioderma and La Roche Posay. One of the products inside the box is worth more than the box itself. The No7 Laboratories Dark Spot Correcting Booster Serum is usually £34.95.

Inside the Boots Winter Skincare Edit that's under £30 (Boots)

But if you’re more of a haircare fan, then go for this exclusive , which offers customers the opportunity to try over £130 worth of . The features a line-up of eight products from both new-to-Boots brands, as well as beloved customer favourites, including

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One of the hero products in the box has to be the which has a flawless five-star rating on the Boots website. The , and together, the hair duo surpasses the cost of the box, essentially making the rest of the products totally free.

Fragrance

I sold hundreds of bottles of perfume and aftershave during my four-year stint behind the Boots counter, and for Black Friday, the retailer has up to 25 per cent off selected lines.

Whether you’re looking to treat yourself or tick off some Christmas shopping, there seems to be something for everyone, with discounts on Hugo Boss, Rabanne, Marc Jacobs, and more.

When I worked at Boots I would often be called upon to help people pick out perfume for Christmas, so I compiled this .

Boots fragrance counter

But if you want the quick version, here’s what I suggest adding to your Black Friday basket:

• - was £70 now £42

• - was £74 now £55.50

• - was £92 now £73.60

• - was £74 now £59

• - was £81 now £50

• - was £68 now £34

If after all that, you're still a bit stumped and nothing feels quite right, Boots actually has a fragrance finder where you can input brands and fragrances someone likes, and it will recommend alternatives. Or you can add fragrance notes and it will tell you which perfumes will appeal.

Find out more about my

Star gifts

Much like the beauty boxes, often have a better-than-half-price saving and this Black Friday, Boots has over 100 to choose from. I’ve combed through and picked out some of my favourites with the biggest savings, that are just generally good value or are popular with shoppers.

• - Exclusive Limited Edition - £34.50 worth £88

• - Limited Edition - £36 worth £93

• - £34.50 worth £70

• - Limited Edition - £45 worth £103

• - Limited Edition - £45 worth £106

• - Limited Edition - £45 worth £123.16

• - £24.50 worth £50

• - £24.50 worth £50

• - £20 was £54.96

• - Limited Edition - 339 worth £90.10

• - Limited Edition - £42 worth £96

As a general rule, the gift sets ‘for her’ are typically better value than the male gifts, but this does offer the opportunity to scoop some serious savings. My top pick has to be the offering one of the biggest price to value ratio. Plus it includes the viral Black Honey lipstick which is £24 alone - more than half the price you pay for the box, with an extra four goodies inside. The offers a complete skincare routine, though, so it’s great for those just getting into skincare, or for brand superfans looking for a restock.

What’s great about all of these too is that they make an epic gift in their own right, but can also be split into stocking fillers to save more money.

Shop all of the

No7

Shoppers can - including the coveted Future Renew range. The peptide-powered skincare launched earlier this year and shoppers went wild for it.

No7 Future Renew range (Rachel Pugh)

It is reported to be incredibly fast-acting, with No7 claiming that the serum is ‘proven to reverse visible signs of skin damage in just four weeks’ including fine lines and wrinkles, uneven tone and texture, dry skin, and less elastic and firm feeling skin.

The range features a Prices start at £24.95 and go up to £42.95 - so it’s not particularly cheap to buy - but this Black Friday, shoppers could get the

Another great deal is the No7 The Beauty Collection 8 Piece Full-Size Set, worth £120 but now £31.50. The set even includes the , which is worth nearly £18 alone.

Shoppers who spend £35 on No7 will also unlock the chance to get the (£198.50 to be exact), and again is a great one for splitting up as stocking fillers.

Shop all of the

Electrical beauty

Don’t sleep on the electrical beauty deals either, with savings on the likes of Shark, Dyson and Remington that are worthy of being snapped up.

The Shark FlexStyle 4-in-1 Air Styler & Hair Dryer in Stone was originally £269.99, and has dropped to £215.99, saving £54. Meanwhile, the Shark SpeedStyle RapidGloss Finisher & High-Velocity Hair Dryer was £200 and has been cut to £159.99, with £20 having been knocked off the Shark SmoothStyle Heated Brush & Smoothing Comb, down to £79.99 from £99.99.

However, shoppers will need to be quick to bag the deal because it ends on November 28. Anyone who spends over £60 on selected electrical beauty will also bag £10 worth of Advantage Card points, too. Score.

On Dyson, Boots has dropped , saving shoppers £80 on the RRP. The Mirror Choice Dyson Airwrap Multi-Styler and Dryer in Blue/Blush was , saving customers £80. Last year, Boots offered bonus Advantage Card points with the sale of an Airwrap, so to see its actual price cut is a big deal.

The Dyson Airwrap is £80 off for Black Friday down to £399.99

Meanwhile, the cheaper version of the Airwrap Complete - the - which features fewer attachments, has been cut , saving an extra £50. And the , now under £300 from £329.99, with the , saving £100.

But if you’re looking for something a little more purse friendly my favourite - and it’s the lowest price they’ve been all year. Originally £79.99, the are now down to just £21.50 as part of the health and beauty retailer’s Star Gifts.

Other deals we're loving elsewhere include up to 30 per cent off Sol de Janeiro at LOOKFANTASTIC, while Elemis is currently offering 25 per cent off selected products with the code CYBERTREAT. Find out how to get over £300 worth of skincare for £130 here. Or shop the Boots Black Friday sale here.

Bethan Shufflebotham