OK. We're kidding. We swear. We are not advocating for a 5th "R."
However, we just read a fascinating article in the San Francisco Chronicle about "returnistas" -- people who buy things (the Chronicle focuses on clothing, but we think it could be anything) and then almost immediately return them, unused.
The SF Gate doesn't posit this as a "green" habit -- they consider it a habit created by the current economic nosedive. They're calling it "one of the biggest trends for Fall/Winter '08."
But we think this rise of the "returnista" does have a little to do with green habits, and how this economic crisis (as painful as it is) might be reinforcing that first "R" -- reduce. Even if shopping addicts have to buy that "thing" first, only to return it later, they are still effectively reducing. Aren't they, in some way, learning the joy of not consuming?
It's a fascinating article that really cuts to the mental/emotional aspect of shopping.
Are you a returnista? Do you buy things you don't need only to, with much joy, return them later? Or is this a pretty pathetic trend that only a super-materialistic person would understand? (That's what the commenters at SF Gate seem to think...)
Get the whole article here.
image via kennymatic; Flickr.com
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I've bought things and then returned them a few days later. It's usually because I see a great bag or blouse (or shoes), take it home, try it on with some of the clothes already in my wardrobe, and discover that it doesn't really match anything I own.
view christinalouise's profile
oh, i do this quite often. i'm glad there's such a snazzy name for it. i buy clothes at my favorite discount store, only to return them when i realize... yeah, i didn't really need that third sweater. my mom does it too, but only because she doesn't like to try things on in the stores. but i'm getting to where i just don't buy it in the first place now--reducing!
view amber77's profile
It's fine to return things because they just don't quite work out or turn out to be unnecessary, but there are actually a LOT of people out there who buy things they never actually intend to keep in the first place.
Most of them are addicted to shopping (there are several psychological causes for this) and don't keep things because they know they can't afford to do so. Sadly, what they really need is a good therapist.
Take the case of one shopping addict my boss had to deal with - she ordered dozens of different items in only a few weeks and sent back ALL of them, including shoes she'd already worn and scuffed (needless to say she didn't get her money back on the worn shoes). Her little "bad habit" cost the store more in packaging costs and credit card transaction fees than they made on the shoes, so I won't be surprised if stores with a lot of "returnista" customers start instituting restocking fees to cover their expenses.
It's worth pointing out that not buying an item in the first place will also save you whatever fuel it takes to get back to the store (unless you live close enough to walk).
view Stiletto's profile
i never take the tags off until i'm just about to use something, because i've talked myself out of a number of impulse buys after the fact - sometimes you just need more time to reconsider. i also "vulture" the stuff i want, debating whether i reeeeaaaaally need it for weeks and waiting for the price to go down. unless i'm on a mission and need results, why spend more than i have to?
view youreacigarette's profile
My sister does this a bunch. If the store is crowded or chaotic, she'll buy all of the things she's seriously considering, try them on at home and then return everything that doesn't fit or make the cut. I think it's a weird, weird habit, but in some of the bigger clothing stores in Manhattan, you'd spend more time waiting in line for a dressing room than actually shopping.
view maryhawkins's profile
this isn't green. think of all the receipts needed!
view theambershow's profile