What Kind Of Shopper Are You?

This article appears in the 21st Rich Life Carnival. If you came from the carnival - welcome! I hope you will consider subscribing via RSS feed or e-mail.

(The Augusta Chronicle)

Years ago a friend introduced me to what she called “reverse” shopping. Reverse shopping, which I think is a phenomenon of big stores, is when you walk around the store putting items in your cart and then, after some deliberation, put most of the stuff back on the shelves. Rolling around the store with your items in the cart gives you a little time to consider your proposed purchases. Do you really need that item? Is it too expensive? Would it be better to have that expense next month instead of now? In a way, it allows you to have buyer’s remorse before you’ve actually purchased anything. If you have the time, and it works for you, reverse shopping is a great technique for cutting back on your spending.

Today I heard Jean Chatzky talking about something called “circular” shopping. Circular shopping involves buying things and then returning them. Circular shopping does not refer to buying something with the intent of using it and returning it, which is dishonest, it is literally buying something and then returning it. Evidently the pay-off for this practice is two-fold. If you are a watcher of daytime talk shows you are undoubtedly aware that some people have a real physical and psychological reaction to shopping. They get a high from the “hunt” of looking for something and feel unfulfilled in some way if they don’t buy anything. As a result they buy things that don’t fit, that they won’t wear, don’t like and have very little interest in. Once they get the item home it goes into the closet and is never seen again. Now, perhaps in response to the economic downturn, a lot of these unwanted items are being returned and the purchasers are discovering that they get a thrill from receiving their funds back. Fast forward to the present and you find people buying items, having the thrill of the hunt and purchase, and then returning them, for the thrill of receiving the money. I wonder if the shopping feels like a job and the return feels like a paycheck.

Jean Chatzky mentioned that retailers have to take into account an estimate of the percentage of their sales that will end up as returns and, as a result of circular shopping, that percentage is going up. I am for anything that makes people spend less but circular shopping seems a pretty convoluted way to go about it! Additionally, if the money they get back when they return something feels like “bonus” money, I imagine they would be much more likely to blow it on something else, therefore not really spending less at all.

On a slightly related note, the Wall Street Journal Holiday Sales Blog recently published this list of some of the big store’s policies on returns based on price markdowns, which you may find of use –

Best Buy:The electronic and entertainment retailer’s year-round price adjustment policy is currently in effect. If an item goes on sale within the normal return or exchange period for that product, you can bring in the receipt and a cashier will have the price difference credited back to you.

During the holiday season, Best Buy expands its price-adjustment and return policies. For most merchandise purchased after Nov. 1, the store’s normal return policy (which varies depending on what you buy) doesn’t kick in until Dec. 24, giving you extra time to return items or present receipts for price adjustments. However, don’t hit the snooze button on the morning after Turkey Day.

“Doorbusters on the day after Thanksgiving are considered a limited-quantity item and you do not get a price adjustment,” says Best Buy spokesman Brian Lucas. So if you purchased an item before Thanksgiving, only to find it listed among the Black Friday doorbusters, the store will not give you a price adjustment for that particular discount.

Target: Target’s price adjustment policy will remain unchanged during the holidays, according to Target spokeswoman Jana O’Leary.

Target will adjust the price of any item that goes on sale at their stores the same week or the week after the purchase, as long as you present the original sales receipt. This includes the deeply discounted items featured in the store’s post-Thanksgiving holiday circular.

To grab a sneak peek of the circular, visit www.target.com/weeklyad starting at 2am CST on Nov. 26.

Wal-Mart: Since Wal-Mart considers itself to be an everyday low-price leader, the big-box retailer does not have a price adjustment policy because deals and discounts are available every day, according to company spokesperson Melissa O’Brien.

Instead, Wal-Mart will match a market competitor’s printed advertised price on the exact same item, so bring in the competitor’s circular if you want to ensure you’ll get the best price.
The store’s policy also applies to Black Friday items listed in the store’s circular.
As for what those Black Friday discounts will be, Wal-Mart will confirm their deals on their Web site next Monday, says O’Brien.

Macy’s:Macy’s will make a price adjustment if an item is offered at a lower price within 10 days of your purchase, as long as you present your original receipt. Black Friday doorbusters are unique to that day and may not be subject to price adjustments.

Nordstrom: This department store’s year-round guideline for price adjustments is two weeks, although exceptions are left up to the store manager’s discretion, according to an email from Nordstrom spokesperson Julee Kraus.This general policy will apply during the holiday shopping season.

Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic: All three stores offer a one-time price adjustment on an item as long as you bring in the original receipt within 14 days of your purchase. (See Gap’s price-adjustment policy.)

I do a bit of reverse shopping when I’m killing time in Target or Michael’s and am always happy when I manage to talk myself out of buying something. What about you? Are you a reverse shopper or a circular shopper? Or do you have a different style entirely?