dressitloud.co.uk
Feature
20
sale scandal
humans to animals
For many people, the Christmas spirit is far from over when they indulge into their last mouthful of Turkey on Christmas day. In fact it takes until Boxing Day for some people to appreciate the holiday because Christmas brings its own present for us to share; of course I’m talking about the Boxing day sales.
The day after Boxing Day I bravely set off on a one hour journey to Oxford Street, armed in my new faux fur coat, I was ready to take on anyone who barged me out of the way. I’ve never been one who buys and buys and buys for the sake of it. In fact I’m much more money concerned. It seems that many people are fooled by the sales and splash the cash so frequently they are in fact unaware of the damage it has on their bank account.
Before recklessly buying now, I ask myself a number of questions, such as; "Would I have been attracted to this product had it not been reduced?" "Will I actually wear it?" "Will I regret buying it 10 minutes later?" And the biggest question of them all, "Am I only considering it because of the price?" It’s easy to get sucked into the world of bargains but really aren't we actually saving money if we don't buy it in the sale like we didn't when it was originally released? Ironically, after all, sales are simply left over goods and if so, what makes them so much more valuable when their prices are slashed? The fashion industry is notorious for its ‘fast fashion’ and with seasonal trends being churned out so frequently as well as other collections, it is almost impossible for the consumer to keep up. Sale items are therefore already out of date and that’s where it requires a great shopper to sieve out the hidden gems amongst the throwaway junk.
As a money-conscious shopper I returned home from Oxford Street - the place where you can find three River Islands on one street - with only four items bought. Although I tend to view sales as consisting of mostly unwanted goods, I didn't actually come across much stuff which even caught my eye, apart from the designer handbags in Liberty of course.
A month ago the UK saw the arrival of 'Black Friday' in which some shops stunned shoppers with incredible deals on the first Friday of December, which proved, for the shops, to be quite a success. Having said this, the human race turned into animals, fighting over TVs in Asda and other electrical goods, in various well-liked superstores with many buying numerous copies to resell at a higher price. What is more alarming however is not that consumers were making the most of the slashed prices, but that at the cost of doing so, people