There was a time when I’d do my shopping after work on a weekday. The malls are quieter and there’s always something a little naughty about shopping on a weekday. A little like a forbidden fruit because week days are for work you know, not play.
These days, I hardly go to the malls anymore but last weekend on a bit of a whim, I decided to brave myself and hit the closest mall. When I managed to get parking almost immediately upon entering the car park, I knew it was going to be a good day. And it turned out it was!
I was there to find a pair of black heels for work, and I managed to within about half an hour of looking. You know what they say right? If you find what you are looking for within an hour of browsing, it’ll be a good shopping day. It was too.
But the thing was, I was shopping alone. That allowed me to take my time or breeze through irrelevant sections of the department store as I saw fit. At the end of a good shopping day which included that said pair of shoes (at half price yo!) and some new makeup and lots of lovely groceries (yes, grocery shopping makes me VERY happy – got a problem with that? 😛 ) I found myself strolling back to the car, pretty much laden down as in the pic above and thinking about whether it was more fun to shop alone or with friends or family.
What say you?
I like browsing and window shopping with friends or family. It’s fun to pick out clothes or shoes that we might not otherwise notice, or play with makeup colours and just have fun while at it. Sometimes, if I’m shopping for clothes I like having a second opinion, especially if I’m feeling on the fence about a particular item.
But when I want to do proper serious shopping, I prefer to shop alone. I don’t feel like I’m taking up anyone’s time nor do I feel like anyone is obliged to keep me company while I hmm and haw over choices and colours and design. I sometimes take a while to decide if I want something and in the case of shoes, I ended up walking through the shoe department 3 times before I spotted the shoe I eventually bought. If I shop alone and feel on the fence about a particular item, I usually don’t buy it. Learned this the hard way after some duds 😛
If I had been with someone, I may not have taken as much time to browse. If said friend is just tagging along they may feel bored or tired or just uninterested in general. I don’t blame them. If I’m on the receiving end, that’s exactly how I’d feel. I also find that when I go out shopping with people, I always end up not buying anything LOL
My sister tells me I’m horrible because when she’s out with me, she ends up doing all the shopping while I don’t buy anything 😀 But when I’m on my own with the intention to buy something, I usually find I’m better that way. I find what I want, buy it and leave. I don’t infringe on anyone’s time, I buy something I like (never mind that others may not) and I go where I want and see what I want without having people dragging their feet after me.
Do you prefer shopping alone or with friends or just with someone?
As I said, for actual proper shopping, I prefer to go at it alone. It’s more liberating. But if I’m browsing then I like doing so with friends or family. How about you? 😀
Paris B
Yay, I never realised that so many people are actually on the same boat with me 🙂
I can only buy things for myself (clothes, skincare) when I’m doing shopping alone. If I’m going out with my hubby and toddler .. most of the time , I don’t get to buy anything. Perhaps feel kinda of rush and pressured if shopping with others.
I love the care-free feeling of shopping alone 🙂
It’s funny isn’t it Jessl? I think most of us thought we were alone in our habits when it turns out that so many people are like us! 😀 I feel like you – shopping in company makes me feel like I have to make snap decision and I don’t like that 😛
Shopping is my alone time – which I don’t get a lot of, especially with a young baby! But I rarely take the plunge and buy stuff unless it’s a “need” item (rather than a “want”). My only exception is drugstore beauty, since I will jump for joy if I find an elusive or limited edition something-or-other that I’ve been hunting down. When I’m with my husband, we usually go shopping for him since he likes to have a second opinion.
Ah drugstore is such a temptation isn’t it? I walk in there and next thing I know, I’m walking out with a bag of things I didn’t even know I want (or need 😛 )
I rather shop by myself these days. It\’s more fun this way and i get more accomplished. As I age, i seems to know exactly what i want nowadays. Hence, i can always do with lesser opinions from friends, we also avoid wasting time looking at things that don\’t interest each other and waiting around.
I have to agree with you right there, Lisa. I think age does have a part to play in it. We know what we want and where to get it, and we don’t have that desire to waste time anymore. I shop like a guy – go in, get what I want and get out especially if it’s clothes or shoes. Rarely do I end up with more than I bargained for LOL
It really depends.
1) All my previous offices are located right smack beside a mall.
You name it – KLCC, Midvalley, Pavilion, Sunway Pyramid, Subang Parade, Summit & I myself lived nearby to shopping malls like Jaya 33, 1Utama, Tropicana.
To others it’s shopping mall.
To me it’s just another store.
Yes, I’m pretty immune to the discounts, sales, freebies & events.
Close my eyes, I can imagine it inside out.
2) My working hours are not normal 9-5. Same goes for days.
So that leaves me sometimes walking in those mall in strange hours.
Feels like I owned the whole place.
Which explains why I’m not fond of going to the mall during holidays or weekends.
3) The MOTHER
Yes. That’s my nickname, among my friends & even ex-colleagues – male or female. Because I know them so well (in tht area), I know when it’s compulsive buying, buying although they already have the items or they are running really short of $. It didn’t help that I’ve photographic memory & I used to edit thousands of product images for ecommerce sites on weekly basis. Automatically, whatever they bought, it goes into my brain. Most time they forgotten they bought it! I nagged till they drop it.
(Most time, we laugh about it. It’s lk being in some hypno-therapy)
4) What’s to love?
But they usually enjoy (my frank) opinions e.g. if the clothes feels right or how to use a certain product & food. I’m a food lover & love sharing BUT don’t enjoy ordering a lot & wasting. Food like music it’s universal, it keeps people together.
Also love joining contests at roadshows & events, it’s just so wicked fun. Yes. I’ve roped in people to sing, danced, did many weird things with my strangers, friends & family members before.
Things that if we do in real life, it’s a straight ticket to mental asylum. 😀
Hehehe.. that’s why I’m also known as the Gila.
What an interesting dissection, Vera and I think all quite true for us too 😀 I prefer staying out of the malls on weekends and holidays too. The crowds everywhere really get to me and I’d rather not be in that crush so week days are really the best time to shop in relative peace and quiet and that helps when I’m actively looking for something.
Hi, I shop alone all the times! 🙂
It’s awesome how similar we all are 😀
For serious and specific shopping I prefer to do it by myself. With friends I used to seek opinions about stuff I wasn’t sure about and I usually regret buying the items lol. I do go window shopping with friends but if I chance upon an item I really like and they don’t I still get it anyway :p I used to get the type of friends who I know will stop me from shopping to go out with me as I know I wasn’t able to refrain myself lol. But these days I am better at self control hence I find it more fulfilling to shop by myself 🙂 or basically really just sticking to only getting what I really need.
Haha I so feel you re: regrets after consulting opinions 😀 I think we’ve all gone through it one way or another. These days I just trust my own opinion. That way, if I have to regret anything, it’s just my fault 😀
Hmm I was about to say I purely prefer shopping with friends. But you made a good point. It’s way more efficient when shopping alone. There are certain stores I completely ignore when I’m shopping alone, because I know they’re not my style, etc. But when I’m shopping with friends, we stop by EVERYWHERE. And that can definitely get annoying. Even to the shops they don’t care to buy from, but just want to browse.
But on the other hand, it is nice to get a second opinion. I’m quite the indecisive shopper, so sometimes it’s not to get that extra input of ‘yes, you should get it’ or ‘no, it’s expensive/you have something like it already.’
So the second opinion is always nice.
In the end, it just depends on what I feel like, similar to what you mentioned. If I need to get shopping done and I’m on a time crunch, myself. If I don’t mind wasting the day away shopping/browsing, friends for sure!
The browsing thing is exactly why I cannot shop with company if I’m doing actual shopping 😀 It does get annoying especially if it’s something that’s not your style nor taste and I always feel like I could be spending my time more efficiently elsewhere. But if I’m there to just keep someone company then I don’t mind as much.
In my opinion there is nothing like shopping alone. I do not think about shopping like a leasure activity, with time to hang around and so on. But an activity that demans all the time an attention I might have available for that purpose. If I spend time with friends and family all out attention goes to enjoy our meetings. I do not like sharing that time with any brand despite how good or prestigious it might be and also I find it hard to concentrate and make decisions with other people around.
Take care Paris, always a pleasure to read you 🙂
Excellent point, Pipa! I am a woman on a mission when I’m actively shopping, not browsing 😀 Thanks for chipping in and I hope you’re keeping well!
It really depends. I do think some friends (ahem) are terrible for my credit card and at the same time, the very same friends are great for my credit card. If I have something in mind that I really want to buy, I’d just go off and buy it. Alone. Otherwise, if it’s a girls’ day out, I’m naturally with them. Groceries? ALWAYS ALONE. I have a list. I stick to it. I’m in and out. I have a tendency of buying crap and stocking my pantry with unnecessary junk so I don’t like to spend too much time there. Wine shopping? ALWAYS ALONE. I like to take my time to browse and read descriptions and check for reviews online and discuss it with shop people. Unless I have a hankering for a specific wine, and I’m with someone and I can’t get rid of them, then, NO CHOICE LOR. 😀
Haha sounds pretty much like me! I do like to take a little time browsing groceries usually because I sometimes get meal plans in there. I know, I should be making a list, but it often never happens unless it’s for necessities like sauces that always run out at the most inconvenient times!
Shopping alone is definitely my style… I’m always worried of boring friends when I’m in the mood for serious shopping.
I feel the same, especially when they aren’t shopping themselves, but just “keeping company” I always just end up cutting things short and having tea or something 😛
I shop with somebody only when I already have something specific in mind but I get my serious (and most satisfying) shopping done when I’m by myself. On Mondays or Tuesdays. When the malls have just opened. =)
Weekday shopping is awesome! Everywhere is quieter and it’s so much easier to actually shop and buy stuff without queueing or bumping into people all the time! But most of the sales tend to start on weekends so that’s a bummer LOL
I\’m exactly like you! I like to shop alone when I really have the intentions to buy. But when I\’m accompanied by friends, I usually end up with nothing. So yes, I like to shop alone if I need my shopping to be productive that day. 😛
Haha good point about being productive 😀 I think sometimes in company, its easy to get distracted hence being less productive eh? 🙂
I tend to buy a lot more when shop alone lol
Like 10 tops n 3 pairs of shoes n bags then I m done for 3 months:)
Haha talk about major shopping haul! But it’s so easy in HK!
I definitely like shopping alone…even grocery shopping. I guess I feel like it’s personal and I will be judged for what I am getting, which is so not true. Nobody cares. Also, the ‘inconveniencing others’ piece…yeah. That’s a huge factor. I like the freedom of going where I want for as long..or quickly in most cases, as I want. I often become overwhelmed, tired and/or hungry rather quickly which leads to being irritable so I would rather be alone which allows me to commence at any moment and usually rather suddenly.