If there’s one group activity I don’t enjoy, its shopping with friends. Unless it’s just browsing the mall and no real intent on actually looking for something you need, than I find it annoying or unless it’s my mom who always ends up buying me something (even though she swears as soon as we get in the car that she’s not) lol. Don’t get me wrong, I love company and doing things with my friends but when it comes to serious shopping it can just turn into a mood killer. Here’s why I prefer shopping solo:
1.You don’t have to feel bad about how much or how little you spent. It might just be me, but I’m pretty sure a few of my friends feel the same way without saying it. I can’t help feeling a tiny bit down when my friend leaves the store with 5 bags and I’m leaving with one or sometimes none. Or If I’m the one that got lucky that day and found a ton stuff while my friend didn’t. It can be an awkward feeling. You know what I mean right, even though their your friends and this shouldn’t count at all. But everyone loves the feeling of leaving a store knowing they just purchased a ton of great stuff, so when you leave the store with nothing it’s a bummer in itself, but if your with someone who’s beaming from their successful shopping session, it feels even worse.
2. You can take as much time as you would like. Going through the whole entire sales rack or whole entire store can be boring if you’re not the one shopping, so I hate when I can sense that my friends are getting ancy and want to leave. Of course my friends would never say anything but they don’t have to, you just get this vibe and I know bc I’ve felt the same way when I have to wait more than 20 minutes for them. So you can’t blame them, but me being me, I’ll start to feel bad and end up leaving earlier then I wanted to. When your by yourself you can take as long as you want looking through everything.
3. Not having to show anyone how hideous the outfit you tried on is. Even though I feel completely comfortable around my friends there are those times when something looks really bad on you and you would rather not show them. But there on the other side of the door begging you to show them what it looks like. Plus, if your shopping for bra’s and under garments, that can sometimes be embarrassing. At least if your alone, you can quickly rip off that outfit that makes you look 20 pounds bigger and that’s the end of it.
4. You get to pick the stores you want to stop into without feeling judged. I shop at a wide variety of stores. For example, Claire’s is known for more of the teenage group but I still like to look because you can find some cute things for good deals. Some of your friends might not feel the same way so when you drag your friends in their (knowing there rolling their eyes) you’re not going to really focus on looking, you’ll be more focused on the fact that you’re the only one that wants to be there.
5. You don’t have to worry about how your shopping partner treats the employees. Thank god I don’t have any friends that would act this way…anymore. But I have and it’s the most embarrassing thing when you’re with someone who finds it okay to treat the sales assistant like crap for no reason. It’s not their fault the store is packed and the lines are long or they don’t have your size in the pair of shoes you wanted, and it’s not like giving them an attitude and treating them like your better than them is going to help anything. That’s happened to me before and I had to just walk away because I was so mortified. If I’m by myself I know non of that will be going on.
6. If you really like those pair of jeans you can buy them even though your friend might disagree. I hate when I really like something and want to buy it but then have someone next to me telling me it’s the ugliest thing they’ve seen and would never wear it (my mom has known to do this). Well, that’s fine, everyone has different styles and opinions. Plus, that’s why they give you receipts and have return policies. You can buy whatever you like without wondering what your friends really think about it.
There are a few downsides to shopping alone:
Second Opinions- Its nice sometimes to have someone there when you’re in the fitting room to tell you whether you should get that dress in a bigger size or not. Then you get home, try on everything and realize you have to bring back half of what you bought.
Could get lonely especially if this is a three hour shopping session. You might get bored after a while and wish you had someone to talk to, but that’s why you have your cell phone 
Shopping to me is more like a mission that I want to get accomplished so that’s why I feel its annoying with all those distractions. It has nothing to do with worrying about what other people think, it’s the fact that it takes away from your retail therapy.
I’ve always felt this way about shopping, and I always seem to regret not going alone. Nothing against my friends, and I’m sure some of them might feel the same way. It’s just a lot easier for me and a lot less stressful shopping alone. What do you guys think, do you prefer shopping with friends or by yourself?
