Are you a Shopaholic?
Do you crave for buying things which you really don’t need urgently? Do you always shop until you drop? I have seen so many people around me who are anytime, any hour, anywhere ready for shopping. Even when they just think of shopping, their eyes glitter. They are happy and just zap out from their seat to shop.
A lot of times people spend over their budget and get into deep financial trouble, spending more than their income. And they don’t regret their decision of unwarranted shopping. They can go all over the mall, and keep shopping.
Some people are such addicted buyers that when they go to buy one handbag, they will end up buying 10 handbags and come out of the shop. And some people will spring out and go on buying spree when they are emotionally low; such people are called ’Compulsive shopaholics’.
‘Trophy shopaholics’ are perfectionists by nature. They want to buy everything that perfectly suits them. They are sticklers. One day I went with a friend of mine for shopping just to kill time; and got so exhausted; she bought pink, blue, green upholstery, mugs, glasses, pillow covers, bed sheets, linen and what not just to suit her occasional change of wallpapers!
Some guys want to be seen as big spenders. They get a kick out of it. They want to be seen as ‘generous’ spenders. But, such people like ‘flashy’ items. They will buy very gaudy things to show off their wealth.
Whereas, ’Bargain Seekers’ are people who are obsessed with sale; they feel high with discounts, and buy one get one/two/three free kind of schemes. They will purchase items they don’t need, still go for the sale because things are sold cheaper.
And the ’Bulimic shoppers’ are the ones who get trapped in a sadistic cycle of buying and returning items. They will go on haggling with shop keepers about exchanging items they have purchased.
Some are ‘Collectors’ or ‘Connoisseurs’ who are never happy with the number of items stored by them on a typical collection such as wine, rum, perfume, watches etc. They never feel complete unless they have more and more addition to their collection.
“Compulsive shopping and spending are defined as inappropriate, excessive, and out of control,” says Donald Black, MD, professor of psychiatry at the University Of Iowa College Of Medicine. “Like other addictions, it basically has to do with impulsiveness and lack of control over one’s impulses. In most of the nations in world whether progressed or under progressed, shopping is embedded in the culture of mankind.
There are certainly a lot of commonalities among shopaholics and other addicts. A research says about 10 to 15 percent of the population of world is shopaholics. They are confirmed addicts and they are liked by the marketers. Why not? The shopping addicts make up for half the sale of any brand.
In my opinion the ’Innovators’ and ’Early Adopters’ are typically shopaholics. They are described as curious, adventurous consumers who buy first, talk fast and spread the word to others about the pros and/or cons of what they have purchased. According to Everett M. Rogers in Diffusion of Innovations, the landmark 1962 textbook that popularized the study of how new ideas and technologies spread through societies, early adopters make up 13.5% of the consumers who will adopt an innovation.
You might have some shopaholics in your family; they might be your siblings, kids, and spouse, parents anybody. It is important to note that going a shopping spree once in a while does not mean you are a shopping addict. However, there are several signs and symptoms shopping addicts display that you must watch out.
And, if you are one, please don’t feel shy; visit a shrink before you are gripped with it.
