When I received a gift of money recently, my first impulse was to grab my laptop and shop online. Maybe there are some summer tops on sale. Wait. What? I’m going to shop online despite having a stack of 30% off and $10 off coupons from local department stores? Even though I might have to pay shipping charges? Um, yeah. For me, online clothes shopping is more fun than in-store shopping.
It wasn’t always this way. A long time ago, in a land far away, when my sister and I accompanied my mother on shopping trips to department stores, it was a fun excursion (for us, anyway). We all had to change out of our grubby around-the-house clothes and into something more presentable. There was a saleslady and cash register in every department. She’d help you find another color and bring the item to your dressing room—so my mother didn’t have to get completely dressed again or send my sister and me on a mission to fetch another size. Sometimes Mom would treat us to Cokes in the store’s coffee shop, while she had a cup of coffee.
Fast forward to today. On the rare occasion when I shop in-store at places like Macy’s, Kohl’s, JCPenney, or Herberger’s, my chances of finding a sales clerk are slim. Plenty of times, I’ve zigzagged through the store before I spot one several departments away. And this bored underpaid person doesn’t look too happy to see me with my question about another size.
To be fair, I have an uneasy relationship with sales clerks. The ones I remember from my girlhood often looked down their nose at me and my teenaged girlfriends as we flipped through the racks. When I was older and clearly a serious shopper, often a saleslady’s “help” turned into pushy upsell.
Today, if I want a snack to fuel my shopping, I can buy bottled water and a candy bar at the checkout. Not exactly the same as sipping a leisurely Coke while spinning on stools at the counter with my sister and mom.
I do get that customers like me helped change the retail experience. We don’t come because it’s no fun, and it’s no fun because we don’t come.
Nevertheless, if I want to shop for clothes these days, I’m most likely to be sprawled on my bed in my nightgown. There I can happily scroll through several store websites at once, checking for clearance items and considering the possibilities. Maybe the blue patterned one. No wait, what about the green one? And my coffee’s near at hand.
9 responses to “Shopping? Let Me Grab My Laptop!”
I still have not embraced online shopping other than for books…feel like I already spend far too much time at my computer plus I’m not a big shopper…but your post me realize that a little attitude adjustment might go a long way in how I view the experience. Thanks for that.
No need to embrace online shopping unless you prefer it to in-store shopping!
I think online shopping is the way of the future, but I have to admit, I’m not a fan. I miss the stores, and the whole experience. Plus, I like to feel the material and try things on before I buy, because my body is actually several different sizes. That being said, no one is designing clothes for middle aged women, and the stores aren’t being kept up at all!
Agreed! I was returning something last week and the store’s carpet had stains in numerous places. I can’t figure out why designers don’t design for us — we spend more than teenagers!
How many of us have some of our best memories from the mall on Saturday afternoon? I do still go to the ‘real’ mall and try on clothes. Then I come home and buy them online! LOL
That’s funny!
Sad, but true. The retail experience isn’t what it was. When I do go, I try on umpteen items (with no clerk to get another if the size isn’t right) and I’m lucky if I come away with one thing. Needless to say, I rarely go! Luckily, garden grubbies is pretty much all I need to wear. 😉
What I didn’t mention was how frustrating it is to find styles that make sense for women my age. Fortunately, I can be casual most of the time!
Yes! Not everyone is shaped like a teenager, hello!