Have you recently felt despondent with difficult things? How did you deal with it? Whatever it may be, everyone seeks relief from stress in one form or another. And for many, it’s retail therapy.
In pursuit of alleviating stress and anxiety, some people often find themselves in a mall after tedious hours of work. Strange enough, spending money on things brings them joy and recovery.
Read on to find out the magic that retail therapy brings and discover the advantages it gives to consumers and small businesses.
What is retail therapy?
Retail therapy is the routine behavior of buying goods or services as a response to emotional or mental distress. It is a shopping pattern triggered by the need to ease negative feelings or emotions.
Whether we admit it or not, shopping makes us feel really good. Over half of surveyed US adults have admitted that they have done “stress spending” to cope with negative feelings.
Compared to impulse buying, the key to retail therapy is control. Instead of buying out of impulse or addiction, retail purchases can be a means for a consumer to feel motivated again.
How does retail therapy help consumers and businesses?
There’s no harm in treating yourself once in a while. In most cases, shopping even gets out of hand when we deny it to ourselves. So, go treat yourself and see how shopping at retail businesses can change your whole mood.
Retail therapy brings benefits not only to consumers but also to small businesses. Here are some of them:
It helps customers cope
Many people think of retail therapy as an ineffective form of coping. However, we can never deny that getting the things you really want spikes your dopamine levels. Shopping has been proven to offer several psychological benefits.
Sadness or anxiety is often caused by a feeling of hopelessness. When we can’t manage or control the things around us, it brings us discouragement. But when we actually get to control something–in this case, our expenses–it gives a great feeling of satisfaction.
It boosts self-motivation
If you set that dream bag or those new shoes you just spotted at the mall as a self-reward, it gives you extra motivation to perform your best at work in order to get them.
It serves as a prize, knowing that you deserve it because you worked hard for it. It keeps you motivated to face work and other areas of your life head-on.
This is because retail therapy involves vision and anticipation. While working, buyers are already imagining the moment they purchase the items and how they will look when they finally have them.
It supports small businesses
When consumers travel and shop in local communities, they also discover local products where genius artistry and craftsmanship are showcased by the store owners themselves.
When you shop from small businesses, you directly support the locals–helping them revitalize their livelihood. It’s like hitting two birds with one stone. You get to have your retail therapy and you do your part in supporting local artisans.
It promotes sustainability
Through therapeutic retail, consumers can remold their consumption habits and make more conscious decisions to support sustainable business practices. Not only is shopping healthy for your psychological being, but it’s also healthy for the planet.
When retail therapy is done in thrift stores, small innovative businesses, and local shops, consumers get to discover more eco-friendly items. At this point, it’s not just retail shopping that provides therapy but also the awareness that you’ve made a conscious effort to lessen your impact on the environment.
It establishes social connections
Through social media engagement, people get to share amazing experiences with the world. When customers post or share a newly bought product from a store, other users get to see and react to these posts too.
Online shoppers who use the same shopping platforms are also becoming more connected as they share the same product reviews and recommendations online.
Sellers and buyers also get to create a strong bond from their transactions. Customers are now more aware of who and where to buy from due to these positive encounters.
How businesses can take advantage of retail therapy
Retail therapy is more common than businesses think. Consumers are driven by so many psychological factors that influence their shopping behavior. Whether it is triggered by emotions or not, retail therapy helps consumers and businesses in a lot of ways.
People are now more conscious of how they would want to spend their money when shopping. Shops should take advantage of these retail therapy benefits and incorporate them into how they function as businesses and how to produce their products.
