I shop mostly online. I get periodically sick of order-and-return churn but also can’t quite get myself into stores and dressing rooms, partly a post Covid readjustment thing (reacting differently to public places, overstimulation, people). It’s probably a sign I need to take a shopping break

Totally online. Even if Covid hadn’t happened, I’d probably be doing 80/20 online/in-store. I certainly miss the visual stimulation of mall and shop wandering.

Wow, this is really interesting to me, a die hard second hand first shopper. I do buy a few things retail - underwear, socks, and lately some layering t-shirts. Most of my shoes are second hand, but I will buy first hand occasionally, especially if it is dupe of something I know works. My favorite thing is to browse a chaotic thrift store to find the one treasure, but I understand that is not realistic or appealing for most people. But when I am after something specific, I can almost always find it on an online consignment shop, and even more so if I have it shipped to my sister in Florida. I do not often have the luxury of returning my orders, so am careful - but I also take into account resale value in case the order doesn't work out.

I have not bought any clothes in person since the start of the pandemic. I do return things in person, though.

I didn't shop much this year. I have had a lot of other stuff on. I did no online shopping for myself this year.
In person new shopping was mainly shoes
1 pair of white sneakers
1 pair of birkenstocks
2 pairs of jeans. It was a deal with 2 pairs nearly the same price as one.
1 fleece at kathmandu

Thrift shopping is usually random for me unless I am looking for something and spot it in a thrift shop
1 jacket (as seen in my last WIW)
1 pair of cropped pants
2 sweat shirts at recycled boutique
3 t shirts at various shops
1 cardigan
1 summer dress brought in Autumn so I haven't worn it yet.

I agree with Angie's point about new fashion being an important source of income and thrift shopping being good for sustainability. My goal is to buy new clothes that wear well and last so are sustainable and use thrift shopping as a complement.

I am not a very successful online shopper but I do heaps of *research* online. I know the sort of things I like and might be after so I often browse previously successful sites for similar styles. I then might use a wishlist never intending to purchase everything on the list. As I live in our largest city and in a very fashion conscious part of that city as far as upper middle class goes ( not high end designer) then I have a large number of B&M stores available to me. Also some excellent outlet stores at very reasonable prices. So on the whole I have the most success with online research but then B&M buying.
13 items this year: 2 were gifts, 2 thrifted, 4 from outlet store, 5 new from retail stores all on sale. 4 of those 5 were chosen after research and thinking about colours I was interested in. There was a degree of serendipity about it too though.
I guess I must spend a lot of time thinking about it. I also spend plenty of time reading novels, doing family history, watching House of the Dragon and minding my baby granddaughter as well as working!

Increasingly I am buying items online rather than in-store. I have also been less concerned with buying new stock, preferring to get better quality through buying from outlets and items on sale.

These purchases are representative of my 2022 shopping strategies:

• Silk Dress - second-hand from local consignment store
• Vuitton bag - second-hand from local consignment store (same as dress)
• Anorak - online - Outnet purchase (on sale)
• Radley bag - online (full price)
• Peacoat - online (on sale)
• Boots - local store (full price)
• Dress - local store (on sale)

This has been a very interesting task, as I realise that I generally pay full price for shoes, to get my size, but unless I am totally in love with something, I have increasingly been waiting for discounts or sales before buying, especially when it comes to online purchases.

Thanks Carla for this thread. I have found it interesting.

With the cost of living rising here- food, petrol, interest rates - fashion is having a hard time. I suspect there will be some boutiques and chain stores that don’t make it- I often wonder which ones. There are a couple of low- med price Aussie brands focussing on office wear that I think are vulnerable.

So far, I have added sixteen pieces to my wardrobe in 2022. I purchased two of them in B & M in Toronto in January, and all the rest have been online.
Online shopping is new for me. I prefer to shop where I can see the item, but that is becoming more difficult. We have not travelled to shopping centres as much since Covid and the two independent boutiques in town have closed.

It’s been a low shop year for me, about half of which was secondhand. Everything was purchased online.

I did have a few duds. One secondhand blazer that arrived stained (the dry cleaner later ripped), and a fake Burberry houndstooth jacket that I thought was vintage. Not a big monetary loss, but certainly a bummer. I did have a couple of big wins, like my secondhand peacoat and chocolate brown lug loafers.

I have not been to B&M since 2020. Our mall is a ghost town; even H&M closed. I have a few favorite online retailers, two sell secondhand stuff and one of those two take returns.

I have not shopped B&M since the beginning of the pandemic. I have made returns in person, though. I’m not sure how my return rate has been. I returned things for fit, quality, color. Most of my purchases have been from Macy’s. I joke that I kept Macy’s afloat during the pandemic. I gained weight at the beginning of the pandemic and needed everything except shoes.

Late to this, but wanted to say this is a very interesting thread!

As you know, my strategy is definitely secondhand first. In your collections of purchases up thread I can definitely see how effective your strategy of retail for essentials and secondhand for statements and offbeat/interesting pieces is for you, Runcarla.

Others have suggested a similar strategy for me from time to time (especially when I lament lacking essentials) and it is definitely a sensible approach. I feel like I just don’t have the bandwidth to figure it out! Especially because then inevitably retailers change their cuts/fabrications and what was once a reliable source of essentials is no longer.

I share the frustration with the buy-online-and-return cycle. Intellectually I can see the comparison to taking 10 things into the dressing room and purchasing 1, but emotionally it’s just a lot more frustrating to handle all those voluminous returns!

That said, most of what I buy retail is indeed online. Mostly underpinnings and footwear at this point.

Fascinating thread!

I'm an online-only shopper, full stop. Even before the pandemic, I didn't love going into B&M stores, and I haven't stepped in one at all since. I just get overwhelmed by all the things on shelves and hangers in person, which usually means I turn around and walk out without seriously looking at anything. I also just haven't bought very much over the last two years; I sold my last home and bought a new one in the spring, and have been consumed with surprise (and not fun) house projects since. But thanks to a few extra pounds, I'm in the process of retiring a few things that don't fit quite right anymore, and bringing in some new (or new-to-me) things that fit my today-body.

I've bought 13.5 things this year, including gear & pajamas (10.5 items of "real" clothes and 3 gear/pajama purchases). I haven't been perfect by any stretch, but when I buy new I'm trying to prioritize more sustainable fabrics and vendors who are trying to do good in ways that matter to me. If I buy secondhand, then I'm less choosy. So far that's 12 items new, and 1.5 items secondhand from Poshmark (the "0.5" is secondhand Express pants that are a duplicate for a pair I already have, but a size up... the old ones are my absolute favorites and get worn about once a week, but are a bit snug at the waist and starting to stretch out at the knees after about 5 years of hard use).

I changed sizes and I ordered one item in 4 sizes, including a tall, as I did not know my size and the reviews said it ran short. Now I know the sizing, but it won't transfer exactly to other items from the same line.
I used to order one size, then return it and order another, but now I find it easier to just order the items and return the ones that don't work. Usually it's only 2 per order.

I purchase online from stores that I can return to in person, although one is further away than I prefer, as it left my local mall.

I usually look at an item in store, then order it in my size. Seeing items in person allows me to check the color, material, etc. before I order, which significantly cuts down on returns.

There is very little in person in second hand stores in my size around here, so when I'm with friends I shop wineglasses, bowls, serving platters, etc. Fit is way too hard to figure out, so I don't shop second hand clothing online.

I have learned finally to be picky and patient and what I am looking for will turn up second hand. Good for you for pointing that out.

I keep too much instead of returning, especially things bought on line.