Friday 06 December 2024

Shopping – A Habit or Curse

I have a friend who is an accessories fanatic.  In fact, she is so hooked on accessories that her husband had to set aside an entire section of their bedroom closet just so she could have space to stack all her shoes, handbags and jewelry.  He is angry with me right now because in a moment of what I thought was brilliance I gave her a Groupon coupon offering 80% off the purchase of women’s shoes at Bloomingdale’s.  I thought this was better than a traditional card and flowers but I forgot that he was upset over the fact that she had a whole side of the closet taken up with her shoes already.  He was less than thrilled about my gift.

Of course, she was a devoted customer of Bloomingdale’s already.  She even had their web page on her “get list” a set of favorite websites that she could access with one keystroke; some of her long-time friends don’t even rate that status.  She collects their best merchandise, and buys great items for him as well.  In fact, that is her standard trick to cool him down; whenever she thinks he’s getting a bit testy about the latest addition to her collection she goes out and makes an addition to his wardrobe.  I sometimes think he is a sucker since a good leather belt or new wallet will make him forget about her most recent pair of earrings.  Of course, on an occasion, she has to go a bit further.  It is a joke that whenever he’s wearing a new sports jacket or raincoat you can be certain she’s gotten a new handbag or pair of shoes.  But nobody lets him know.

This year they went to the islands for Spring Break; something they’d never had a chance to do when in college.  And they looked dashing – she in her latest swimsuit from Bloomingdale’s and he wearing one of those island sports shirts and straw hat.  They used their Groupon coupons to pay for the outfits, leaving them plenty of change to spend at clubs, casinos, and restaurants.  We only wondered if they saved enough to pay duty on the things she must have brought on their return. I personally think that both of them must understand that they need money for paying bills of basic needs.

It’s a good hobby for keeping different accessories matching to your dresses but too much of everything is a bad. This habit of her might disturb their monthly grocery budget. One of the main reasons for such habit is, she used the credit card of her husband which has not limited her shopping even in their tight budget.

I think she must consider her wardrobe of accessories before buying new stuff. So, that she can prevent herself from purchasing repetitive and unnecessary items. Cleaning her closet from time to time and discarding the unwanted items might help her limiting from buying more stuff. Limiting her to coupons and brochures for discounted prices and stop her.

There is a psychological fact about buying more stuff is that
“Buying decision responds psychologically to visual elements and stories.”

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