11. Shopping in England

Last August my friend was in England. When already leaving for her home country she went shopping as she wanted to buy presents for her family. She was surprised to see many people in shops, especially in those with the word “SALE” in the shop-windows. As summer was coming to the end, shops had sales. They wanted to sell the goods for summer use at a lower price and thus make people buy them.

Big shops have sales several times a year, and if people go to sales to save money, shops have sales to make money. They earn a lot of money. How do they do it? It’s very simple and easily explained psychologically. When you see the sign £79 £59, which means “20 pounds off the original price”, you cannot help buying this thing because you want to save £20. In fact, reduced prices are the greatest temptation. When paying the money for the purchase, you are not yet sure, whether you really need this thing or not. After a week or a fortnight, though, you begin to realize that you have wasted £20, but you can’t help it.

As for my friend who happened to go shopping in sales period, I don’t know if she could resist the temptation of reduced prices…

There may also appear one more question: What kinds of goods are usually sold at sales? In the first place there are those things that have not been sold that season. We have to be very critical when we see a lovely summer frock, for example, at a double reduced price. We have to ask ourselves why nobody bought it before.

There are also the so-called “special offers”. They are new goods that come straight from those who produce them. The thing is that the producer may have some problems with how to sell them; that is why he agrees to a lower price. So examine these “special offers” very carefully.

Some housewives always look for “seconds”, or second-class goods, in shops. There is something wrong with them and because of that the prices are reduced. But those defects may easily be done away or simply overlooked.

People in England do not go to look at things, they go to buy them! If you enter the shop, it is supposed that you want to buy something. In case you have no money but want to look at goods, you may go window shopping. The shop-girl is sure to help you choose just whatever you need. With a smile on her face she will wrap the purchase for you, if you take it with you. You may leave your address and have it delivered to your place. You may pay for it either in cash or by cheque. Everything in British shops is done to the customers’ convenience. Some of the shops are even open till late at night and early hours of the morning.

Notes: cannot help buying – не можна не купити; cannot help it – цьому не можна зарадити; to do away – усунути; you may have …delivered – вам можуть доставити; to go window- shopping – розглядати вітрини

Advice for consumers

Most mothers have a good piece of advice: Never go into a supermarket hungry! If you go shopping for food before lunch time, you’ll probably buy more than you plan to. Unfortunately, however, just this advice isn’t enough for consumers these days. Modern shoppers need an education in how – and how not – to buy things at the grocery store. First, you should check the weekly newspaper ads. Find out the items that are on sale and decide if you really need those things. In other words, don’t buy anything just because it’s cheaper than usual! Next, in the market, carefully read the information on the package, and don’t let words like “New and Improved!” or “All natural!” on the front of a package influence you. Instead, read the list of ingredients on the back. Third, compare prices; that is, you should examine the prices of both different brands and different sizes of the same brand