Shopping is often the most relaxing and pleasant activity in a long day, but not every shopping session leads you to great finds. Improve your success rate and shop like a pro with a few excellent tips that can make the entire experience more fun and more fruitful.
Discover the shopping secrets of the pros and improve your wardrobe by learning how to pick the right item at the right time, in order to complement your style and save money.
Only Buy Things You Love
Making a purchase should be based on both your initial reaction to an item and the way it fits in with the rest of your wardrobe. The most obvious of all the shopping secrets of the pros is only buying clothes and accessories you love and that you can see yourself wearing and being happy.
Getting something without loving it is just wasting money that you could spend on more expensive items you’d actually love.
Keep Up with Your Favorite Stores Through Social Media
Start following your favorite retailers on Facebook, Twitter and sign up for their newsletters! You’ll get news about upcoming sales and collections. Another way to improve your shopping experience is using coupon apps that will save you money and even notify you when the items you want have reached the price you’re willing to pay.
Choose Pants for the Way They Fit Your Hips and Waist
While most people know this, some are still discouraged by very long pants that needs to be hemmed. One of the most important shopping secrets of the pros is that alterations are absolutely necessary if you want to look flawless. Focus on pants that fit your hips and waist and look for those brands next time you go shopping.
Don’t Avoid the Men’s and the Kids’ Sections
If you like masculine-inspired looks, there’s no reason why you can’t browse the men’s section too after you’re done with the women’s area of a big store. You never know what you can find, and if you have a petite frame, you should also check out the kids’ section. Stay away from items that scream junior, but do give others a chance.
Try the Clothes at Home
When you know you make bad decisions under pressure, don’t feel like you need to make a decision in the store. Most retailers have good return policies. Trying out clothes at home, where you can see how they work with the rest of your wardrobe is one of the best shopping secrets of the pros. You might need to make more trips to the store, but you only need to keep what your really love.
Don’t Spend Too Much on Sales
When discounts are in play, impulse purchases are usually a bad idea. Just because you’re getting a great deal on an item doesn’t mean that you need it. Spending a little here and a little there on clothes you don’t actually love will reduce your budget for when you find a truly stunning item.
Don’t Trust Sizes
Once you abandon the notion that sizes are universal, you’ll feel a lot better. Go for the right fit and don’t try to squeeze yourself into clothes that claim to be your size, but are clearly not. Placing little confidence in sizes is really one of shopping secrets of the pros.
Communicate with Sales Associates
Salespeople can often be over-zealous and annoying, but you shouldn’t ignore them completely when you’re shopping. Find one that’s not too pushy in their pitch and won’t shower you with compliments constantly. If you develop good communication with sales associates, you might gain access to pre-sales from upcoming collections!
Be Extra Careful When You’re Buying Vintage
Accepting small flaws and alterations when you’re buying vintage clothes is one of the biggest shopping secrets of the pros. However, you should only buy vintage when the design is timeless and when it’s the right fit. Buying clothes for later, when you think you’ll lose weight is a recipe for disappointment, but it’s even worse with vintage clothing, which might need extra maintenance while it’s gathering dust in your closet.
Stick to Cash to Avoid Overspending
Planning your shopping trip in advance is always a good idea, but you can take it a step further by only using cash. Unless you find a once in a lifetime purchase opportunity, don’t touch your credit cards and just stop when you’re out of cash. You can also avoid impulse purchases if you go shopping when stores are least crowded. Plan your shopping experience early in the week and in the morning.
See also:Best Jeans for Your Body Type
