25th May 2024
Anisha, a budding IT professional from Bengaluru, was extremely fatigued due to the stress at her office and her personal life seemed to be in disarray. Feeling overwhelmed, she decided to take a break and head to the mall. She wanted a short convenient easy escape mode, which turned out to be a shopping spree in the sprawling Pheonix Asia Mall near Yelahanka. As she wandered through the brightly lit aisles, the allure of retail therapy beckoned. Entering her favorite clothing store, Anisha’s eyes sparkled as she browsed through the racks of trendy outfits. The soft fabrics and
vibrant colors seemed to whisper promises of a better mood. Without much thought, she began picking out items, each one seeming to lift a weight off her shoulders. Anisha shopped for things which are both necessary and not necessary. Post the shopping spree, she was satisfied and heaved a sigh of relief, this provided her with a temporary escape route from her mundane life. However, her expenses bill was humongous. The weight of her stress seemed momentarily lifted, replaced by the excitement of her new purchases. For a moment, everything felt right in the world. However,
as Anisha returned home and unpacked her bags, a twinge of guilt began to gnaw at her conscience. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she had indulged a little too much, especially considering her financial goals. Reflecting on her impulse shopping spree, Anisha realized that while retail therapy had provided temporary relief, it came at a cost.
In short “Retail Therapy” worked for Anisha and works for many other individuals in this fast paced world for temporary relief or escape. What is retail therapy and what is it about retail therapy that works for individuals.?
In today’s era of extreme convenience and accessibility, one of the easiest escape routes for boredom and anxiety is “Retail Therapy”. The popularity of retail therapy has increased 10-fold thanks to the numerous vloggers and influencers who keep posting videos and reels on their shopping spree. “Shopping” is forming valuable content for a lot of influencers. It would not be wrong to assume “Retail Therapy” is catching up in India just like the western economies. Highly capitalistic economies like US, UK, Japan, China spend the most on shopping, be it online or offline. I have seen numerous instances of my distant relatives in US going shopping because they were feeling bored.
What is Retail Therapy?
According to Plastow (2012) retail therapy is a situation in which an individual has some form of anguish or suffering that can be extinguished or atleast temporarily pacified by the experience of
shopping or by the articles purchased. Shopping was found to be effective in mitigating residual sadness (sadness that follows an event). Retail therapy seeks a type of satisfaction through an enjoyment: that of the purchase itself or of the object acquired.
One can wonder as to how shopping can be a sensible option for a person in anguish to calm down. Published research (Rick et al., 2014) has indicated that shopping restores personal control over one’s environment and can reduce situational sadness temporarily. Retail therapy has proved effective in compensating for perceived psychological deficiencies such as low self- esteem and the loss of control ( Kang & Johnson, 2010; Sivanathan & Pettit, 2010) .
An interesting study based in Taiwan, the Ministry of Health and Welfare of the Taiwanese government has revealed that that elderly respondent who shopped daily had a 27% lower risk of death than the least frequent shoppers (Lee and Bottger, 2017). However, one cannot ignore that findings could be vice versa, that the healthier respondents would be spending more time on shopping as they are more fit physically as well as cognitively.
An interesting study based in Taiwan, the Ministry of Health and Welfare of the Taiwanese government has revealed that that elderly respondent who shopped daily had a 27% lower risk of death than the least frequent shoppers (Lee and Bottger, 2017). However, one cannot ignore that findings could be vice versa, that the healthier respondents would be spending more time on shopping as they are more fit physically as well as cognitively.
The advantages of retail therapy are extremely short-lived, whereas the disadvantages have a long term impact.
Pros of Retail Therapy:
- Mood Enhancement: Shopping can provide an immediate mood boost, releasing endorphins and reducing stress.
- Self-Expression: Choosing items that resonate with personal style can be a form of self expression, boosting confidence and self-esteem.
- Social Activity: Shopping can be a social activity, providing opportunities to bond with friends or family members.
- Sense of Control: It can give a sense of control over one’s environment by selecting items that fulfill desires or needs.
- Discovery: Retail therapy can lead to the discovery of new products, trends, and experiences.
Cons of Retail Therapy:
- Financial Impact: Impulse buying or excessive spending can lead to financial strain, debt, or overspending beyond one’s means.
- Temporary Relief: The positive effects of retail therapy are often short-lived, leading to a cycle of seeking constant gratification.
- Emotional Dependency: Relying on shopping to regulate emotions can lead to dependency or addiction-like behavior.
- Environmental Impact: Excessive consumption contributes to environmental issues such as waste production and resource depletion.
- Conflict in Relationships: Differences in spending habits or financial priorities can lead to conflicts in relationships, especially within couples or families.
Understanding the balance between enjoying the benefits of retail therapy while being mindful of its potential drawbacks is key to maintaining a healthy relationship with shopping. Whatever the consequences of retail therapy are on an individual it has a tremendous positive impact on the
economy of the country.
Questions
1) Do you think Anisha was right in using retail therapy as a quick fix for her mood?
2) What suggestions can you give to strike a balance and reduce excessive spending?
References
https://bizfaculty.nus.edu.sg/wp-content/uploads/media_rp/publications/jcm5q1491185835.pdf
https://www.lendingtree.com/credit-cards/study/emotional-spending/
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1752-0118.2012.01283.x
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1057740813001149
