I agree, Anna, it can be personality, or maybe fashion personality or savvy?
I admit that I don't have the "eye" you may have or Angie has, and so am probably more likely to step into some purchases that, upon reflection and trying on at home, I decide won't work or are not "me".
The good thing about that is that I often learn something that goes into my pea brain such as, you know this type of hem just doesn't work, avoid that in the future, or the opposite, if you find something like this in the right color, grab it.

Like others have noted, overall that doesn't happen as much with B&M shopping where I can try on multiple sizes, and even go get an item to try on with it. Stil,l some returns occur because I'll find it doesn't go with as many things and so I'll decide I need to be more picky. That means a few more returns but fewer orphans.
Online is hit or miss--I've gotten some of my very best, most fun items that way by trying something new or just because I would not have the stores locally.
Then as noted, size, comfort, fit just can't be judged if it's in a brand that's new to you, or shoes--for shoes I wish everything were available at a DSW where you can put it on and in about a millisecond go, "next"!.
Still, I don't like lots of churning online, so I've become better, I think, at imagining how some things will work or also just trying to resist sales pressure for things I don't really need or want.

I grew up in a small town but close to moderate-sized cities. Shopping with my mom was an occasion and we'd make an event of it. We never returned stuff.

I now live in a big city with a mall very close by. Since having my daughter (5) I mostly prefer online shopping. It's a way to relax in the evening - we don't go out much because she's young and goes to bed early. I also like shopping online because I can think more rationally (usually) about the item. I also find better deals online and definitely more choice, like shorter inseams. If I'm unsure about a particular brand, I'll read the reviews meticulously. If I don't have that option, I might, if time, go try on in store (with a list in hand) and then go home and order online for more colour choices or a better deal. I find returns a pain but I do them. Nordstrom is the worst from Canada. I just bought some Boden pj pants online - wouldn't have had that choice at a B&M in Canada - and I love them!

I, like Angie, prefer shopping anonymously. I used to frequent a smaller boutique in my neighbourhood. One of the SAs had a pretty pushy way. I once bought something I wasn't sure of and returned it later for a store credit. Well the store credit ran out after a year and I lost the money. I'll still shop in boutiques Sometimes - just not that one!

I don't mind tire-kicking when online shopping (if fact I think it's fun - I guess I don't have better things to do ) I don't like it when I'm in B&M. There I'd just rather get the job done and get out!

I grew up in a small town where there was 1 department store. We went there for back to school clothes and that was about it. Every once in a while we got to drive to the mall about 30 miles away. I remember loving clothes but not really understanding fit or what looked good on me.
Now that I am older it's really about finding the right fit. I thought I would be a boutique person when I got older. I like the places where they point out what works for my body type and then leave me alone to try everything. I just that I kinda feel more obligated to buy when I go in the smaller places.
I really like going somewhere I can try on the clothes but I will order online if the store doesn't have a size. All this free shipping has changed our shopping experience. For environmental reasons, though, I am vowing to shop more locally. All this cardboard and jet fuel just doesn't feel right to me.

Everything kerry said. Grew up shopping seasonally in a nearby city twice a year (if that); never returned stuff.

Now I shop online because it is more convenient. In fact, I wouldn't have a decent wardrobe at all without online shopping! I shudder to think.

I also shop bricks and mortar when I get to the city and almost never return stuff from those adventures; I do however return online purchases all the time if they don't work out for me. I try to do it as promptly as I can, and it's not really a hassle; like Diana, I live close to the post office and sometimes they do pick-up anyway.

Like Angie, I FAR prefer an anonymous shopping experience and always have. I've been pressured far too many times in boutiques and come away with things that were not right for me. Plus, the local boutiques rarely stock my size, or my style. I like the idea of shopping bricks and mortar locally, but in my locality, it's simply not do-able.

As for K/R posts -- I enjoy these. I learn as much about others as about the item and myself. Plus, I don't have any real life friends who care about fashion or who know my developing style at all, so I typically get something out of the discussion. If I'm completely in love with the item I won't call it K/R -- it will be more like a "fashion show" (look how many ways I can wear this great item.) But it's nice to take the photos and look at those anyway, simply because sometimes the mirror can deceive me.

I grew up shopping seasonally and never returned anything. I guess the concept didn't even exist as far as I remember! My mom would buy me basic clothing items then I learned to sew and supplemented my wardrobe with my own creations. I recall a lot of corduroy.

Now, I like to buy whatever strikes my fancy, bring it home and see if it works for me. In B&M I do try on before I take it home to get a general idea of fit. But I like to retry at home, with my own mirror and other clothing items & shoes to make sure it works. I will often leave the tags on until the first time I actually wear it. Then I return everything that doesn't work either doesn't fit, play nicely with my other clothes or I just do not reach for it for some abstract reason. I think I return about 25% of what I buy B&M. I think that amount is pretty low since I have a pretty good idea of what I am looking for. I shop online frequently and plan on returning at least half of what I purchase. Most of the time its fit issues.

I guess for the most part, I don't ponder or mull a clothing decision excessively. If I like it, I buy it and work out if I will keep it later.

I don't remember shopping as a kid but must have done so cuz I didn't go nekkid! We probably shopped once or twice a year at the department store in our town; returns were never considered. The town has grown and has become a regional shopping hub for mid-level and higher clothing chains, Nordstrom, Macy's, and N-M.

When I was childless, I did a lot of clothes shopping on my lunch hour. I could hit three department stores in that time. After DD was born, I stopped shopping for 16 or 17 years until I discovered online shopping. Bricks'n'mortar shopping trips were reserved for her needs and having her try on stuff; no time for me.

I don't like to take the time to go to bricks'n'mortar stores and try stuff on; it is more convenient to do so after my shower in the morning or in the evening before I change into my bed clothes. Also, some places only carry Petites online. Most of my shopping is online; I make many returns. I do not find returns inconvenient as I do it in the suburbs on my weekly trip to see my mom, and suburban parking is relatively easy.

I also prefer anonymity. But I would shop boutiques if I were taller and more likely to get a fit and I had a larger budget.

Very interesting thread Anna. My shopping memories involve suburban malls and endless looking through Macy's racks of more and more of the same. I cannot tell you how much I hated shopping there with my mother. I only wanted to go to the bookstore.
When, in college, I discovered thrift stores, my entire attitude change. Everything was different, some was good, some was awful. It was a treasure hunt! Fun!
My real shopping personality did not develop in the US at all and in Israel there really is no returning (except for store credit). The boutique lines are very expensive and the regular chains are mostly not appealing. Thus my love of Zara.
But now most of my shopping is in small thrift and second hand stores, and of course, all the owners know and love me by now (as a regular customer and seller, who never stirs up trouble or argues or makes a mess or asks for special favors I am quite unusual). They also know to leave me alone, I will find the good stuff with no help and decide without asking for their opinion. By now sometimes they ask me questions on how to price things and if this or that is any good. I think this is all more a reflection of my personality than my shopping history.

Anna, I feel exactly as you do. I shop very little online (for clothes for myself, anyway; I do buy books and children's clothes online quite often), and when I do, it's something I'm very confident about. I think I've only returned an online purchase once. Like you, I prefer brick and mortar shops, and of those, I gravitate towards smaller boutiques. I almost never return a purchase.

But I grew up in Vancouver. So go figure.

My shopping habits mirror Suz's history...brick and mortar a couple of times a year, and now mainly online for the convenience and variety and access to sales promotions.

I did go through a period when I didn't shop at Zappos at all due to guilt from all my returns. Now, I can usually order shoes that fit and I like.

Like several others, I prefer to shop alone and have minimal influence from the sales associate.

So much has changed over my lifetime of shopping that the periods aren't really comparable. I love the Internet and at the same time still mourn the loss of some wonderful and classic department stores.

Anna, your post reminds me that I wish I could have been in two places at once in Seattle, last autumn, as I would have loved to join you on your tour shopping in the city's smaller, independent boutiques. Next time, for sure!

As a teen, I didn't know enough to be a savvy shopper and did little in returns. I now do more online shopping along with B & M and as I get to know myself and my sizes based on certain brands, I've seen my returns lessen. Still, when footwear must be ordered online, as I'm planning to do this week, returns could be part of it and I'm happy that adjustments can be made for the ease and benefit of the buyer.

Ah, the lure of shopping online, especially during sales season... It seems so much easier to have everything come to me, and all I have to do is accept or reject. Except every once in a while I overdose and then fail to process the returns on time. I really should stick with Zappos and Nordstroms, which have such generous return policies, but somehow I eventually forget, and the cycle starts again.

Hi!
As for me, I think twice before buying anything so I have almost no returns at all. =))
I prefer unique clothes that's why I am looking for shops selling one-of-a-kind-designs by up-and-coming designers instead of well known brands - then you may be sure that you won't meet someone in pretty much the same dress one day. =)))

Where and when I grew up returns did not exist at all. Heck, shopping itself was virtually impossible as stores were either empty or filled with dreadful clothing and shoes. This is what it was like to live in a communist country
Interestingly enough I took to easy North American returns like a fish to water when we moved to Canada. I think the whole shopping experience was so new to me that returns just felt right.
I do return a lot now when I shop online. I don't know how it can be otherwise if you cannot touch or try on the item before you buy it. I think frequent returns are inevitable and expected part of the online shopping and I don't feel bad about them.
I don't shop that much in the B&M stores because there is a very limited selection in my city. Several times I saw something on Gap or BR websites which I wanted to try and went to the store only to find that they do not stock those items. Now I don't bother and just order online.
When I do shop in person I still make returns. I am very selective about what goes into my closet and sometimes I just cannot decide on the spot if this particular item worth a spot in it. I need a calm environment of my bedroom - and the help of my camera and often YLF advice - to decide. I prefer to go through the short hassle of a return process than live with something I ma not completely happy with and I don't feel any guilt about it. I admire those of you who can always make the right decision on the spot and be happy with the purchase every single time - a talent I don't posses.
This is why I seldom shop during trips - because I cannot return and the pressure to decide on the spot is too much. Those who saw me shopping know what an agonizing experience it is!

I grew up never returning anything---it was considered "wrong" by my family to waste the store's time and inventory by buying/changing your mind/returning. I don't really feel this is true any more---financial times are such that I have to take my own needs into consideration if something doesn't suit after bringing it home. I do try to avoid returning but I still do it probably half-a-dozen times a year, both in person and online. Some things just aren't as good as you thought when you bring them home and try them on in your own bedroom.

The guilt of returning IS one reason I do not shop at small boutiques or independent stores....returning hurts their bottom line more than a big-box store or online store. But that's just one reason of several that I don't shop boutiques. There is also the attention factor (I hate it) and the smaller stock at smaller shops. I like choice and variety. Carefully edited collections just don't appeal to me. I want to narrow it down myself.

I agree and totally relate to wanting anonymity. I understand some people loooooove it when a store associate "knows" them or offers their expertise, but I hate it personally. I'd like nothing better than for the clerk to ignore me until they take my money. Shopping is my relaxation time and it makes it less fun for me if the clerk keeps invading my personal thoughts and decision-making.