It dawned on me - why I love sales

With majority of discussions here going towards the idea that we're worth the full price and should pay it if we can - and if we know what we want - which I agree with, I had a realization at one store where my sister asked me to check some trousers in her size she missed out at her local shop.

One floor was sales items only. And everything was neatly arranged by the garment type only - tops in one corner, pants in another, dresses in the middle, toppers on the back wall... you get the idea. It was so easy to walk to the pants section, further subdivided by sizes and browse for the desired style. Done in less than a minute.

It got me thinking, it was SO easy to check everything. Of course shops have various collections and all sorts of other reasons why seasonal stuff is scattered all over the place, but I could just not shake off the feeling of how easy it was and not overwhelming.

Which means that in an ideal world I'd probably be happiest shopping in a small boutique owned by the designer who does small collections. But I digress...

Another thing that I also realized once I was in this "sales are easy to shop" mindset is that I had actually scored some good stuff on sales in the past - in MY size, or rather length. Seems like once they start unearthing stuff to free up storage space at the end of the season, the oddest sizes start resurfacing during warehouse clearouts.

Not sure if this resonates with anyone, but I just wanted to share my thoughts.

13 years ago

Anonymous

Yes, I agree completely. Infact, I think that is why I also don't mind shopping in thrift stores. Goodwill is laid out the same. I get so over-whelmed shopping in department stores.

Astrid

Veteran

Yes, I do like shopping sales too. It's much easier to get a quick overview if something might work if you only shop the sales section. And with my budget I can't afford to always pay full price. But I also fear buying stuff only because it is on sale. That's easier to avoid since I do K/R posts though. And since I defined my own style better.

unfrumped

I do like to peruse some things by garment type.
I agree that in the department stores, it can be fun to get ideas from the collections and outfits but it can take hours to finally determine that you've actually examined all the items on your list.
In the fall and winter I was shopping for some dressy-semi-dressy items, and I swear there was a bit of this or that in every single area of the store. I would think i was done and then, oh, there's another lace skirt! Oh, a sparkly top! Just too much sometimes!

Gaylene

Ornelia, you've just made realize why I keep ending up with duplicates of items I already own. I'm totally the opposite. I NEED the collections and outfits to make me start thinking outside of a very narrow frame of reference.

It's the displays and collections that make me think "hmm, I already have ____ in my closet, so this style top/bottom/jacket would work with/refresh it", or "hey, I love that orange and cobalt blue combination", or "maybe I ought to try that top they are pairing with this skirt, even if I've never worn that particular style".

On the other hand, the orderly layout of the sales floor seems to make me head straight for my size in the pant section where I hesitate over anything that looks too different and end up grabbing another pair of black pants to take to the dressing room. Once they are on, I start thinking "well, these are such a classic; I know that I'll wear them; they fit well; and they are 50% off, to boot". And it's only when I get home that I realize I already have three or four similar pairs of black pants in my closet.

Ajoanna

Active Member

I completely agree with you, Ornella. I don't know how many sillhouettes/new styles that I've tried on and ended up loving simply because it was on a sales rack.

Jules

Sometimes limited choice is a good thing. This winter I was looking at fine knit turtlenecks in two styles and MANY colours at a store I can go to at lunch, so I go by often and take my time with decisions. I just couldn't figure out what I wanted. When they eventually got to deep discount and limited selection, it was much easier for me to figure out, and both the ones I picked have been worn several times already. Of course I took a risk that nothing would be left, but I was ok with that since I wasn't in love with anything.

Thistle

This is why I like on line shopping so much! You can litterally sort and see ALL of the jackets, and then drill down to only see those in the size and color you desire.

Ornella

(website)

Gaylene, how interesting you read the exact opposite from my (and many others') experiences. I love that it made sense to you, but in a sort of inverted way from my original thinking

Mander

This is related to the reason why, as much as I enjoy thrifting, there are a couple of shops that I rarely bother with. They organize everything by color, rather than size, which makes it very time-consuming to see whether they have anything that would even fit me in the first place, let alone something worth buying.

Actually, I dislike department stores organized by collection for this reason, too -- I hate seeing a nice range of items and pawing through them only to find that none of them are made in my size. For some reason it seems that the clearance racks are almost always grouped by size, which makes it easy to see if there is anything I like.

Some time ago I read a book which showed how the aim of marketing is to keep you in the store, touching the merchandise, for as long as possible, which seems to make most people more inclined to buy something. However, I find these obstacles really annoying and I am more likely to put down my "maybe" purchases in disgust than I am to buy something out of desperation.

Suz

Fascinating!

I actually agree with both you and Gaylene, Ornella. Like you, i tend to feel overwhelmed in department stores or even the larger shops, with all the new collections -- although I think if I were able to do more bricks and mortar shopping in real stores I would get over that feeling a bit -- for me, part of it is lack of frequent exposure.

But, like Gaylene, I also enjoy looking at the displays and the stylings and I do come away with ideas from that. And if everything is grouped together I have a tendency to buy the same old thing -- which is great when I want to do some REPLACEMENT shopping for essentials, but not so great if I want to explore my style a bit.

My temporary solution has been to zero in on one or two makers whose clothes tend to work for me in cut and style. And to spend the most time in their little subsection of the store. Not all stores are organized that way, but this is what they do at The Bay (our big department store) so I am learning to ignore the sections that just don't work as well for my budget, body type, and style preferences. I almost pretend that I am visiting a couple of small boutiques under one roof.

Scarlet

That makes a lot of sense, but it doesn't work for me personally. I usually like to buy a couple of things that go together at one time and sales make this difficult since individual items I am attracted to are not available in the right color or size to make an ensemble. I guess it is just a different style of shopping.

ironkurtin

I like sales because my selection is limited, but like Gaylene, I recognize this can be a trap, too.

Funny that people like to shop to see items put together. I never wear a single designer head to toe, so I would never shop like that.

Rinoa

And sometimes department stores have more sizes in the back, but you have to ask! Preshopping online and then going to the department store is definitely the way to go for me.

Janet

I never thought of it that way, but it's a very good point, Ornella!

I should probably shop in outfits more often. I am definitely more of an "item" shopper, and rarely try on full outfits. When I look at store mannequins, I'm more likely to be attracted to an individual piece than an outfit as a whole. Not sure why that is!

Transcona Shannon

Interesting observations Ornella - in the past I have been pulled into buying not-so-perfect items because they were on sale. I wonder now after reading your comments if I was pulled in because of the way the sale section was organized.

Like Suz, I find now when I go to The Bay I go to the sections that work more for my body type and style. I enjoy looking at the mannequins and displays. But it is a huge store and I really have to concentrate to stay focused.

Ingunn

I agree, garments sorted by size and also color makes decision-making a lot easier. Great insight!

Category