When I was flipping thru Dec's issue of Men's Health, a female writer wrote an article on why women love shopping, just like a man who couldn't stop enjoying football, hot babes and fast cars.
Sure, women loves shopping. The girls that I know loves shopping. Ranging from bags (from my TP Yr 1 classmate, Cindy), shoes (Jess, my sec sch mentor aka a good friend) to skincare product (exchange session with Bee Ling, my colleague in Corp Comm), you can't say that women are wasting money to do shopping.
Borrowing a term from Jin Zhengkun, lecturer from Beijing People's University, where he shares tips on social etiquette in CCTV's Lecture Room series. He says: women tend to have more variety and more choices when it comes to fashion, and thus women will tend to buy more clothings, shoes, accessories etc to match their outfits, whether in work or in leisure. When goes along with the right steps for skincare and makeup for apperances, it not only makes one looks pleasant, but also shows courtesy and respect to the others.
So it is not wrong to say women are wasting money by splurging on so many things. Well, I suppose it is OK for us to buy apparels and accessories when necessary, apart from our daily needs. (Hey, one of the basic human needs is clothes. One cannot simply wear the same clothing everyday, right? Even I get tired of wearing the same old outfit when meeting friends.)
And so today is payday. I am extra richer today. And I decided to do some shopping. Some serious X'mas shopping. Trust me, doing some retail therapy don't hurt.
And so this is what I bought:
1. Dec's issue of Men's Health and First magazine X 2 copies. First will be given out to my friends in Malaysia as a surprise gift. For those who did not know what has happened, you can see the photo of me having a conversation with Wayne Wang printed on the magazine.
2. Calvin Klein's Steel Briefs. Now going on 20% off for DBS/POSB Debit/Credit card holders. Free X'mas wrapping from Isetan when making a purchase of $30 and above. Lesson learnt: make use of the discounts and perks from a department store that is offering. If the debit/credit card you are holding on to gives you certain perks when making a minimum purchase, enjoy the perks when you can do so.
3. A brand new pair of Nike Running shoes from Nike Flagship store in Wisma Atria Shopping Centre. For those who did not know, they are the 1st Nike Flagship store in Singapore and S.E Asia. And they are occupying the former location of Topshop/Topman.
Oh yes, it's not so cheap after all. SGD$169, NO DISCOUNT. And should I say the price is worth paying, when I had a feeling that I am actually following the words of a young salesman which gives me a feeling that he is forcing me down the throat for the shoes?
He told me that the current shoes I am wearing are oversized, so I need to get a Size 10.5, as it fits in well. Anything more than 10.5 can cause long term damage/injury to my legs due to the extra space I had in my shoes, and the pressure point had to be exterted to my feet when running, instead of the sole at the tip.
So after trying the shoes for an hour, I decided to get that Size 10.5 Nike Air Max Moto +6. All for SGD$169. As I bought it at 9.08pm, I am entitled to a free $10 vouchers from Wisma Atria SC as part of their late nite shopping promotion.
Lessons learnt? If you know you are going to fork out that extra large sum of $$$ for something you like, especially clothings, go for: 1. Brand new ones even though those at the shelves fits you. You never know the condition of the previous person who uses it. 2. Make money works for you, if you know that you can't get discounts, and yet the mall is providing perks for your minimum purchase. That should explain for the $10 vouchers.
Learnt to shop smart, and save smart. And that is the rule I go with when shopping. =)