Working in Retail and Having a Capsule Wardrobe/ Not shopping for a Year

Hey Friends!

I work in a women's clothing store. Our store carries mostly casual clothes, but also a few business type pieces. Many of the pieces are classic and versatile. My store is also part of a larger retail group, and I get discounts at most of the other big chains of soley women's clothes. This makes life both wonderful and difficult. It's great to have such great clothes made more affordable, but it's also a temptation to be pulled into the consumerism that these stores promote.

I have been guilty of buying something just because it was trendy, and I have been pressured into in by managers and coworkers. I have been guilty of buying something because it went down to 12.88,9.88, or 4.88 on the final sale rack. I have been guilty of buying something because I didn't want to waste our special employee 75% off coupons on an item that I really didn't need in the first place.

I am not doing that anymore. I have minimized my wardrobe dramatically, started capsule wardrobing, and I am starting a challenge where I am not buying any clothing in 2016 (more on that in this post). Having a capsule wardrobe has made me a more conscious shopper. I know what I wear, what I like, and what works for me. Now when I shop for an item I make sure it meets those criteria and that I make sure I don't have anything similar in my wardrobe. I also make sure it's going to fit into my wardrobe. I have developed a rule for determining if something fits into my wardrobe. If I can't think of at least 3 different things it can go with in my wardrobe (and 4 is even better), then it more than likely will not work. If for some reason it doesn't meet all these criteria and I still want it, I will tell myself I need to wait 24-72 hours. If that item is still on my mind in a few days, I can then reconsidered it.  These techniques usually do the trick for avoiding temptation and unnecessary shopping. However, I still get asked a lot of questions about working in a clothing store and doing this.



Here are the most commonly asked questions and the answers to them:

Q: How do you stay up to date on the current fashions for your job if you are not buying clothes/have a capsule wardrobe?
A: My store carries a lot of classic pieces. They don't really change dramatically. I know we will always have different variations of jeans, shells, cardigans, and dresses. As long as I dress in a style that matches our brand, my work won't even notice if the pieces are last season, (or sometimes not even the same brand), and even if they do I won't get into any trouble for it.

Q: How do you resist the temptation to buy new things with all your discounts?
A: Refer to what I talked about above about shopping more consciously. I keep the bigger picture in mind. I also didn't mention this above, but I also approach work as just that work. I try to avoid thinking about it as a store that I can actually shop at. I don't know if that makes sense, but that is one thing I do on a day where I am particularly tempted. :)

Q: What do your managers/coworkers think?
A: Most haven't noticed, honestly. The ones I have talked to about it have said that they probably wouldn't be able to do it, but have wished me well.

That's the end of my short blog about retail and living a more minimalistic life. I hope you enjoyed it. If you have questions for me or have a suggestion for what you would like me to cover in another blog post, please leave a comment and let me know. I would love to hear from you!

Love,
Sherayah