Can We Explain the Enduring Appeal Of Shopping When Money Is Tight
Despite the challenging economic climate, shopping remains an attractive UK pastime. According to the ‘Consumer Behaviour’ summary by Office for National Statistics (ONS), we’re returning to physical stores in greater numbers. In the update, National Retail Footfall data from Springboard shows the week to 23 July 2023 was 103% compared to the equivalent week in 2022, and unchanged versus the week prior. Source: The ONS
What Does Retail Therapy Really Mean?
I’ve had countless conversations about this. Some suggest it’s the sense of being a monumental winner after getting a bargain. Or that a few hours spent nose-to-glass (or screen), gazing at trinkets and baubles e.g., Bang & Olufsen speakers you don’t need and possibly can’t afford, offers a moment of escapism. Maybe for you, it’s about deploying the least-resistance family leisure time everyone will agree to. If we get under the skin of it, it’s about the dopamine releases we get even from browsing in shops or online.
The Evolution of In-Store Theatre
The phrase took hold around the 1980s, spawning other retailing terms such as, ‘In-store Theatre’ and ‘Experiential’ activation. Speaking of ‘In-store Theatre’, I’m reminded of an unforgettable visit to the London Selfridges store many years ago, where a 30-strong Brazilian carnival dance troupe, Capoeira fighters and musicians performed.
I’m not sure how long it took to perfect it, but the pulsating, crisscrossing live show, descending in tight formation from the top floor’s central escalators created quite the impact. Interestingly, Harry Gordon Selfridge has been described in a Guardian feature as the inventor of Retail Therapy, when he opened his new concept store in 1909. The quote by Lindy Woodhead, author of Selfridge’s biography, showed that his subject was ahead of his time: “He believed in entertaining the public with a large E, and in educating them with a small e.” Selfridge is also credited with introducing the concept of Visual Merchandising.
I’m guessing someone at Selfridges harbouring music theatre ambitions must have conjured the sight, sound and energy of Samba rhythms, rainbow-coloured plumes and the pirouetting crisp white tunics of the martial arts dancers, snaking through the middle of the menswear department and exiting via the Foodhall. To my mind, this exemplified the power of ‘In-store Theatre’, a masterclass in delighting shoppers with new experiences. It coincided with the period when the art and science of retail display nudged its way up the marketing leaderboard, establishing Impulse POP and many other Point of Purchase providers as important stakeholders within the marketing mix.
Affordable Mood Boosting
Lipstick Index
Since then, the phrase ‘Retail Therapy’ has had all sorts of spin-offs. ‘Lipstick index’, explained in an article published by BBC News in 2022 and attributing the phrase to Estée Lauder’s Leonard Lauder – expresses the idea that sales of affordable luxuries rise during economic downturns. The article quotes consumer psychologist Dr Cathrine Jansson-Boyd, who explained there was ‘evidence people attempt to boost their mood with small treats in difficult times.’
“Being short of money is psychologically daunting for people and the way to make yourself feel better, even if it’s ever so little, is to purchase something that you think will cheer you up,” said Dr Jansson-Boyd, an associate professor in consumer psychology at Anglia Ruskin University. Source: BBC News Wales.
Treat Culture
‘Treat Culture’ is another contemporary take, where you ‘opt-in’ to low-cost rewards and ‘opt-out’ of extravagance. It might be the bottle of wine that’s a few pounds extra or ordering takeout with friends. It’s worth underlining that this trend doesn’t only relate to parting with cash. It can be about choosing to spend time doing something you want rather than need to do. Crucially, it’s about the emotional experience, the high or pleasure you get from allowing yourself that small indulgence, and centres on being kind to yourself, as much as having the treat itself.
To my mind, ‘Retail Therapy’ is all of the above, and our job is to create the best environment for the good stuff to happen.
To give your customers an unforgettable in-store experience, contact the Impulse POP manufacturing experts here.
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