Slippery floors and a burst of heat: Tricks shops use to get you to spend more
We’ve all been there. You have a bad day and you need a little pick-me-up – so you head straight to your favourite website to buy something new.
That hit of dopamine you get when buying something is what many businesses rely on – and no one seems to understand it better than fast fashion brands.
But not only is this hurting our wallets, it’s also harming the planet.
In the final part of our psychology of shopping series by the Money blog team, we spoke to fair fashion campaigner Venetia La Manna (@venetialamanna) – who advocates for a more sustainable approach to clothing – about the little tricks fast fashion companies use to get people to spend, spend, spend…
Always in a rush – and slippery floors
Many of the techniques fashion companies use involve ensuring people feel rushed to make purchasing decisions.
Ms La Manna says websites and social media pages are set up to make them look “very immediate” so we “always feel like we have to buy something before it’s gone” – meaning you’re not able to sit with a purchase and think about whether you need it.
Fair fashion campaigner Venetia La Manna discusses the psychology of shopping. Pic: @venetialamanna
Fast fashion companies also keep an eye on trends and push out products as soon as possible to make sure people are “buying very, very quickly without necessarily much thought”.
And the sense of urgency is not just limited to online stores.
Ms La Manna says physical clothes shops will make sure their floors are slippery “so you can almost whizz around with more ease”.
Often they will also have loud music to encourage “shopping in a frenzy”.
They know what you want
Fashion sites use “highly advanced” search engine optimisation to find out what kind of products their customers are searching for and push these items to them, Ms La Manna says.
They also work with popular online influencers and get them to post affiliate links – meaning if you want to look like your favourite influencer or celebrity, you can buy what they’re wearing “in just a few clicks”.
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Ultimately, they are making things “very easy to buy” and often have shopfronts on popular social media sites like Instagram and TikTok.
Plus, there is the issue of affordability.
Many are driving their prices down so low that “it makes you feel like ‘hey, why not’ when it’s cheaper than a sandwich or a coffee”, Ms La Manna says.
Shops are making things ‘very easy to buy’. Pic: iStock
Heaters at the entrance
Physical shops use other techniques to entice customers to buy.
For example, Ms La Manna says the heat changes when you go into the shop so you’re “invited into a warmer environment”.
Shops are also set out in a specific way, often placing cheaper items near checkouts and easy outfit formulas near each other.
The dopamine hit
With lots going on in the world, we may be more susceptible to falling into the spending trap than ever.
“The world is really heavy and people are struggling. Buying fast fashion or buying stuff gives us a momentary hit of dopamine, and of course we need that – when we’re suffering, when we’re feeling low, [shopping] is an easy one to reach for,” Ms La Manna says.
Despite practising “slow fashion” – trying to buy less and more consciously – for years, Ms La Manna says she still has moments where she feels that buying something would make her feel better.
But she says it’s possible to get much-needed dopamine hits from elsewhere – including by being active in your community, or by taking your time to find something you really, really want (ideally secondhand!).
Why does it matter?
Aside from being bad for your wallet, Ms La Manna says overconsumption is also bad for the planet and for the garment workers making your clothes.
She says many big fashion companies don’t pay their garment workers a fair living wage – with many unable to provide food for their families, living in poverty and lacking paid time off.
The overproduction of clothing is also harming communities in the global south who are left to deal with vast piles of unwanted items, she says.
The majority of clothes taken to charity shops or recycling bins don’t end up being resold – instead they are shipped off largely to places in the global south, where communities are “left to deal with a problem that’s not theirs”.
For more information on slow fashion, Ms La Manna suggests checking out The Or Foundation, Remake and the Clean Clothes Campaign.
A trio of property giants has lodged a protest against a radical financial restructuring that will see Cineworld imposing steep rent cuts on its landlords.
Sky News has learnt that British Land, Landsec and Legal & General Investment Management all voted against the cinema operator’s restructuring plan this week.
Cineworld has confirmed plans to close six of its UK multiplexes, but documents circulated to creditors show almost 50 others are in categories requiring landlords to agree to revised rent deals in order to ensure their long-term viability.
Although they carry significant influence in the commercial property sector, the trio’s protest will have no impact on the outcome of the company’s proposals, since its owners are now also among its largest creditors, meaning they can effectively force the deal through.
According to documents sent to creditors during the summer, 33 sites – categorised as Class B – “require a reduction of rent to ERV [Estimated Rental Value] Rent in order to place the sites on a viable long-term footing”.
A further 38 of Cineworld’s cinemas would be unaffected, while another 16 Class C1 and C2 leases require reductions to either turnover rent or zero rent in order to render them financially viable.
The documents added that the company did not have sufficient funding to meet a quarterly rent bill on June 24 of £15.9m.
“The UK group did not have sufficient liquidity to make the June 2024 Rent Payment and required further funding from the US Group to meet this liquidity need.
“Absent this funding, the UK Group would have been insolvent on a cashflow basis.”
Cineworld is being advised by AlixPartners.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Other cinema operators are now poised to step in to take over some of Cineworld’s sites.
The company trades from more than 100 locations in Britain, including at the Picturehouse chain, and employs thousands of people.
Cineworld grew under the leadership of the Greidinger family into a global giant of the industry, acquiring chains including Regal in the US in 2018 and the British company of the same name four years earlier.
Its multibillion-dollar debt mountain led it into crisis, though, and forced the company into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2022.
It delisted from the London Stock Exchange last August, having seen its share price collapse amid fears for its survival.
Cineworld also operates in central and Eastern Europe, Israel and the US.
A long-running measure of consumer confidence has slumped to levels last seen at the start of the year following warnings of “tough choices” ahead in the looming budget.
GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index fell seven points in September to minus 20, with significant drops in predictions for personal finances and the general economy over the coming year.
The report’s authors suggested it was “not encouraging news” for the new government, which has made growing the economy its top priority.
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But within weeks of taking the post of chancellor, Rachel Reeves – followed by prime minister Sir Keir Starmer – moved to warn of a legacy £22bn “black hole” in the public finances and said it would result in a painful budget on 30 October.
Among measures already taken include cuts to winter fuel payments, leaving up to 10 million pensioners up to £300 worse off, and inflation-busting public sector pay settlements.
Tax rises and spending cuts are widely expected in next month’s statement to MPs though The Times reported on Friday that a decision by the Bank of England to slow a programme of loss-making bond sales would leave Ms Reeves £10bn better off than she had anticipated.
It added that she was still expected to push forward with her budget plans anyway as a signal of her commitment to fiscal discipline.
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Chancellor: ‘One budget not enough’
The latest snapshot on the public finances, released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Friday showed net borrowing of £13.7bn during August.
Its chief economist, Grant Fitzner, said: “Borrowing was up by over £3bn last month on 2023’s figure, and was the third highest August borrowing on record.
“Central government tax receipts grew strongly, but this was outweighed by higher expenditure, largely driven by benefits uprating and higher spending on public services due to increased running costs and pay.”
Consumer spending accounts for around 60% of the UK economy.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Data released separately on Friday showed a 1% rise in retail sales volumes during August in the wake of weakness, mostly blamed on poor weather, over the previous couple of months.
The ONS said that the increase was driven by supermarket sales, as demand for BBQ food and drinks rose due to the arrival of some sunshine over the key holiday month.
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UK economy flatlines again
It also credited discounting by clothing retailers.
The data chimes with the latest updates from big retailers, including Next and B&Q’s owner, which have spoken of weak demand for so-called big ticket items such as home furnishings and kitchens respectively.
GfK’s closely-watched survey showed expectations for the general economy over the next 12 months fell by 12 points to -27, while the forecast for personal finances was down nine points to -3.
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Commenting on its key measures, including the headline figure, consumer insights director at GfK Neil Bellamy said: “These three measures are key forward-looking indicators so despite stable inflation and the prospect of further cuts in the base interest rate, this is not encouraging news for the UK’s new government.”
He added: “Strong consumer confidence matters because it underpins economic growth and is a significant driver of shoppers’ willingness to spend.
“Following the withdrawal of the winter fuel payments, and clear warnings of further difficult decisions to come on tax, spending and welfare, consumers are nervously awaiting the budget decisions on October 30.”
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