Sport shoppers: The women who treat bargain hunting as an athletic competition

Research has shown shopping for sport IS a thing

WOMEN are turning bargain-hunting into a fiercely competitive sport where the thrill of winning is more important than the actual item bought, according to new research.

 

The term ‘sport shopper’ was recently identified by researchers at San Francisco State University in a paper they called The Thrill of Victory: Women and Sport Shopping. 

This type of shopper finds shopping akin to athletic competition. 

These bargain-hunters can afford to buy something at full price, but the thrill of seeking out the best deals means a dash to the shops regularly becomes a sporting challenge to beat the retail system. 

 



These bargain hunters don't need the savings, they just like the thrill



And there’s a marked difference between a sport shopper and a bargain shopper. The latter seeks out cheap buys out of necessity, say the authors.

One of the paper’s authors, Professor Kathleen O’Donnell, said: "Even when she can easily afford to pay full price, there's no joy in that for the sport shopper.

 



Trophy shoppers: women can recall their best buys like an athlete winning medals



"She takes a real joy from being able to find that thing at a great discount.”

And like athletes, the research discovered that sport shoppers use tactics and strategy to hunt out the best deals - from memorising the layout of a department store, observing merchandising patterns and time constraints. 

Similar to that time you got a bronze medal in gymnastics or a badge in swimming, sport shoppers can recall the definitive moments they secured their best steal. 

 

Women will strategise like an athlete

Researchers also found that this includes specific dates of purchase, the price of the item and it’s RRP.

Considering a joint Udozi and YouGov study also found that the average Brit will walk 20 miles during their Christmas shopping trips and a festive splurge burns a whopping 1, 572 calories, it might be time to factor in shopping in to your exercise plan.