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Shopping is Frustrating
Jul. 28th, 2016 04:46 pmShopping in San Francisco is harder than I'm used to.
I don't really like shopping, and I'm even less fond of spending money. Still, it must be done on occasion and I do need a light jacket as the evenings here can be cold. I'll likely need one as well for our September trip to London, so I might as well get the jacket now rather than just tough it out.
I'm typically a directed item shopper: I have a goal of picking up a particular item with a budget already in mind, I go acquire it, and then I go home. I don't like browsing for the sake of it, I'm not big on taking hours to do extensive comparison shopping, an item outside of my price range is immediately ignored, and I don't get side-tracked by accessories, extra items, or add-ons. Like a dental appointment, I go in, I get the damned thing done, and I get out again. Easy stuff, usually.
Many stores are relatively small, have a obvious single product line and are easily perused. Those are painless for me, although a little frustrating when I can't find the item I want as there is a lot of walking between those shops.
The large stores I'm used to on the east coast and in Canada are pretty easy: if you want men's wear, you go to the men's wear department. All the major labels and the store brands are there in the same area. I can peruse everything in a half-hour and without wearing the tread off my shoes.
And then there's San Francisco.
Its large stores aren't dividing by function or interest, but by brand & label. There is no men's wear area. If you want men's wear, you have to visit six to a dozen different areas on multiple floors. you visit the Burberry area on the 2nd floor to peruse their men's wear alongside women's wear, etc., the Ralph Lauren section on the first floor to look at their men's wear, etc.. A single store takes an extra half-hour just to walk to each separate section and riding a number of escalators.
It's exhausting & frustrating for me, although I'm sure it makes perfect sense for those guys whose wardrobe is exclusively composed on one particular label. If you wear only Armani, shopping is a breeze.
I don't really like shopping, and I'm even less fond of spending money. Still, it must be done on occasion and I do need a light jacket as the evenings here can be cold. I'll likely need one as well for our September trip to London, so I might as well get the jacket now rather than just tough it out.
I'm typically a directed item shopper: I have a goal of picking up a particular item with a budget already in mind, I go acquire it, and then I go home. I don't like browsing for the sake of it, I'm not big on taking hours to do extensive comparison shopping, an item outside of my price range is immediately ignored, and I don't get side-tracked by accessories, extra items, or add-ons. Like a dental appointment, I go in, I get the damned thing done, and I get out again. Easy stuff, usually.
Many stores are relatively small, have a obvious single product line and are easily perused. Those are painless for me, although a little frustrating when I can't find the item I want as there is a lot of walking between those shops.
The large stores I'm used to on the east coast and in Canada are pretty easy: if you want men's wear, you go to the men's wear department. All the major labels and the store brands are there in the same area. I can peruse everything in a half-hour and without wearing the tread off my shoes.
And then there's San Francisco.
Its large stores aren't dividing by function or interest, but by brand & label. There is no men's wear area. If you want men's wear, you have to visit six to a dozen different areas on multiple floors. you visit the Burberry area on the 2nd floor to peruse their men's wear alongside women's wear, etc., the Ralph Lauren section on the first floor to look at their men's wear, etc.. A single store takes an extra half-hour just to walk to each separate section and riding a number of escalators.
It's exhausting & frustrating for me, although I'm sure it makes perfect sense for those guys whose wardrobe is exclusively composed on one particular label. If you wear only Armani, shopping is a breeze.
