As part of my shopaholic addiction recovery process, I have been very careful with sale shopping. Don’t get me wrong, sales are great they allow you to purchase things at a discount which is always a win. However, sales can also be quite dangerous for our wallet and personal finance goals. A great example of this is outlet shopping. At this time in my life I no longer have the patience or endurance for discount warehouse outlet shopping. I find it not only time consuming but also unorganized, impulsive and full of unnecessary justifications.
The key to curbing any shopping addiction or excess consumerism is really in the planning. Planning the purchases you want to make, waiting until there is a sale that you can take advantage of and just not rushing to buy anything and everything.
Everyone has their own vices in terms of what they spend their money on. For me it’s usually clothing and shoes. I have a handful of stores where I love to shop and what I’ve been doing for the last few months is keeping a folder on my phone where I store screenshots of items I’d like to buy. I will also regularly clear out this album especially when I obtain an item or change my mind (which is the beauty of slow consumerism). When I am alerted of a sale for any of my favourite stores I will usually look in my album to check whether any of those saved items are on sale OR whether someone similar is available at a discount.
In terms of sales that occur each year like clockwork, I think it’s a good idea to carefully budget and plan for the sale before it starts. At the same time, you need to start preparing yourself with the fact that it is likely you won’t get everything on your list and you have to be content with that.
Here are some of the rules and tips I live by when planning or shopping a sale.
1. go to the store
When shopping for clothing or any time of consumable (specially referring to Aritzia and Sephora) I think it’s certainly worth a trip to the store if you’re planning to buy something that is unique to things you already have and you’re unsure of your size or unsure of whether you will like the consistency/scent of a product. Don’t be afraid to go into the store and try out that product or piece. You don’t have to buy it that day, you can certainly take a photo of it’s a clothing item and contemplate the purchase before you make it.
I am inclined not to purchase something if I haven’t tried it on and it’s an item I am not particularly familiar in in terms of fit and style.
2. don’t experiment
When shopping a sale and planning a big purchase it’s important to stick to items that are tried and true. I can’t count the amount of times I tried to experiment with products at Sephora during one of their sales and regret the purchase. I either have to return it (which is a pain) or keep the mediocre product (waste of money). Sticking with what you know and love is key when limiting and selecting the items on your purchase list.
3. Know the return/change policy
This is one of the most important rules of shopping in general. Nothing is worst than buying a bunch of items on sale only to discover that your are not entitled to a refund if it doesn’t fit well. Make sure you can return an item before you purchase and if you cannot then rule #1 becomes even more important.
4. Do your research
If you want to experiment, it’s quite imperative that you do your research. Figure out what products you like and why and search for similar items. Read product reviews, watch review videos on YouTube and see if you can find reviewed on places like Tiktok and Instagram or even Reddit to give you as much insight as possible as to whether you’d like to take the risk and part with you money for that product.
5. Be ok with not getting everything you want
This is just how things are. You can’t always get what you want. Accept it and be okay with it. A lot of these desires are just that: wants and NOT needs. Make sure you practice gratitude for the items and pieces you are able to snag on sale and acceptance for things that sell out that you are not able to get.
And that concludes my tips and tricks for sale shopping. In terms of your wish list, if there is anything that you are looking for it’s always good to pay attention to long weekends which is almost always a time that most of these retailers will have promotions and sales. If you are planning to buy something right now take a screen shot save it in a folder on your phone and check when the next long weekend is. Revisit the item at that time and perhaps the item is discounted or on sale or you no longer want it!
