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These shopping tips will remind you of things to avoid when shopping to avoid bad buys, waste of money and lots of useless items lying around after the holiday.
This is November and in Nigeria where we are based, people believe that this is the right time to shop for everything you need for the Chrismas holiday especially fashion items like clothes.
Have you been in a situation where you set out to buy just a pair of black pants for example and you come back from the mall with bags of clothes and no black pant? That is not smart shopping if you ask me.
Here are a few things to have in mind if you want to always shop smart
You should avoid being spontaneous by all means for you to shop smart. It’s almost like planning everything out first. Buying things just because you stumbled into them or because the price was discounted is not smart. For any reason at all, Plan your shopping to be sure that this is what you really need. Then go exactly as you have planned.
Do not assume that you will remember. Even if you have only a few things to buy. Making a list will help to put you in check. Glancing through it when shopping is like telling yourself that this is what you came to buy and bringing yourself back to the focus. Sticking to your list will help you to avoid spending money on needless things.
This is a short time that you allow for decision making before shopping. This time is necessary because sometimes you may feel you really need something but if you give it a little time, you may find out that there are other ways around it. For example, last week, I was in the market and I saw a set of pots that I really liked so I started thinking that it may be time to change my pots but because I just started practising what I wrote here, I decided to give a little time. Two days later, I figured out that even though the pots were fine, I don’t really need them, I needed a different kind of pot which is even cheaper. Thanks to observing a waiting time.
Make sure that you are not under any kind of pressure to buy things. This is another recipe to buy things that you don’t really need. Some time ago, a friend came to me with beautiful shoes for sale, there was one shoe that everyone said looked amazing on me, but it wasn’t really my style, so against all odds I persevered and did not get that short, but got another shoe. My point: you have to be clear about what you want and have a clear mind about it. Never shop when you are upset or too happy. When you are upset, many things attract you because they can easily cheer you up but chances are that you’ll spend a handsome amount on stuff that you don’t need. Even when you are too happy, everything might seem useful and amazing to you. Shopping when emotional always make you shop more than you want or need, ( except you are shopping as therapy and you have the cash to splurge 😉) otherwise, make sure you have a clear mind when you are shopping cause you definitely don’t want to go way over your budget.
Even though we don’t stick to it sometimes because prices of things change in the market it is better to have a budget than not have at all. This will help you not to spend overly or buy too expensive items.
This is the sales season. Instead of running after the new arrivals, wait for the sales. Within two months of the launch of the new collection, brands usually put up sales and offer a good number of discounts. That is your time to rush to the stores and grab what you need. If you religiously follow the trend of storming out to the stores as they announce their sale, you will have the best items at the most reasonable cost. Watch out for sales this season.
Instead of rushing out to shop every week or day after two, plan your visits for shopping. This will help you plan your shopping and shop smart too. You need to plan out a day to shop and spend a limited budget. Plan your visits and make sure you don’t spend over the budget. The greater number of visits that you’ll make to the market, the more you will spend on shopping. Keep your list with you and make a minimum number of visits so you don’t overspend.
In conclusion, always remember that when shopping, you need to shop smart, maintain a strong will and you’ll be happy with yourself and your pocket at the end of the day.
