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<<<Back to Press Releases |
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17 July 2006 STRATEGIC SHOPPERS ON A MISSION As the school run, household chores and day jobs take over, a shopping trip has turned into a well executed mission and, like all missions, a strategy is needed. Here, Brent Cross identifies the five stages of the strategy women go through whilst approaching their favourite pastime: 1. Planning the attack Women will put an extensive amount of research in so they can pinpoint their purchases before even leaving the house or the office. 79% of women* will use the internet or fashion magazines as a tool to identify their purchases. Using the internet enables them to save time by either pre-ordering or checking the item is available before shopping. I think we need to be careful about what we say with the internet as obviously there is always the argument that internet shopping is taking a growing % of retail spend. I think leaving the statement at 79% use the internet or magazines as a tool is sufficient. 2. Identifying the target Once at the shopping centre, women will know exactly which shops they will and won't visit and what shops will have the items they are looking for. Once the item has been found, it's a quick sprint to the changing room to make sure it fits - according to Corinne Sweet, shopping psychologist and working mother, strategic shoppers will view themselves as failures if they have to find extra time to return items. 3. Going in for the kill This is the most critical part of the mission as the purchase represents 'success' - a shopping mission would be considered a disaster if the shopper left without her purchase as it would be seen as 'a waste of time'. But, due to the meticulous planning involved, nearly all strategic shopping missions are successful. 4. Covering your tracks Depending on what has been bought, Brent Cross shoppers admit that they don't often 'declare' their shopping trips or purchases. Norman Black, head of marketing at Brent Cross says, "Women do not want to create a fuss when returning with lots of bags after a shopping expedition - they will often avoid the subject of what they've spent and what they've bought - they have shopping down to an art!" ..2/ 5. Surviving the interrogation The strategic shopper has a strategy in place for pretty much everything to do with shopping, so, if she were unlucky enough to get caught and questioned, she will already have her responses ready. Corinne adds, "Calmness and clarity of mind are imperative in seeing the perfect shopping mission through to the end and a variety of excuses will aid the strategic shopper in any situation." For example: 'I bought it in the sale and am therefore saving money' 'I've put on / lost weight and need something to wear' 'I have an important meeting and need to look my best' However, the best distraction tactic of all is 'But I bought you something too?' Corinne explains, "Women are brilliant multitaskers, who are learning to take the trudge out of the daily drudge (Sounds a rather negative way to talk about shopping) and are now more strategic in maximising the time available. Brent Cross research shows that, despite spending less time in the centre (down 17 minutes in the past two years), (Would probably rather talk in terms of percentages, certainly for the money rather than give exact figures) women are spending more on a single shopping trip (£86.04 compared to £72.59 two years ago). However, a trip to the shops, particularly for a treat or to network with family and friends, is still an invaluable part of women's working lives." Black adds: "Few people realise the lengths women will go to in order to carry out their perfect shopping trip, and it's interesting to see the parallels that can be drawn between that and the work of a top secret agent. Fortunately shoppers' missions won't involve exploding cars and jumping from planes but they can be just as fun!" * TGI DATA, 25-30 year old women, June 2005. For further information please visit the link below |
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