Before you read the following piece, please answer this first – do you think women or men spend more money? Does the thirst to buy have anything to do with our sex orientation? What to do you think?
I used to wonder why some stores are successful without any decoration, while others spend a huge part of their budget on advertisements and image. Now I know. The former tailors to men, while the other tailors for women because women enjoy the shopping experience, while men just buy. Get in, get out.
In a study titled “Men Buy, Women Shop,” by Wharton’s Jay H. Baker Retail Initiative and the Verde Group, researchers found that women are much more likely going to respond to friendly sales associates, while men are more concerned with the availability of parking, whether the item is in stock or how many people are in the checkout line.
According to Ruth Hayden, the author of For Richer, Not Poorer: The Money Book for Couples, women have been taught to purchase for lifestyle and children, while men have been taught to invest in items that hold value. Another critical difference is that women tend to spend money gradually over time, while men spend them in big chunks. HDTVs, big cars, you name it, men like them. (We know this is true, but the points contradict themselves don’t they? If men likes their car so much, why do they hate having to wait for a parking spot?)
Women also tend to buy regardless of whether or not it’s a good long term investment. This can potentially become a huge risk for women as they age, because of the lack of investments at a young age (remember time grows money). Men’s biggest risk on the other hand is their egos. They need to brag about their possessions and how much money they’ve made in the market, so they end up chasing market performances and keeping up with the Jones much more than women.
Now there’s proof – Women love shopping. It’s not that men don’t spend though. In fact, we might spend even more if we can find that parking spot quickly.
Hey, I thought you might be interested in what others think (at least I am). So scroll a little more and type in your thoughts while reading what others have to say.
Readers have also correctly pointed out that your individual case may differ. Just because a “study” published these findings doesn’t mean that everyone is the same.
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{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
I find this article surprisingly middle of the road on this issue. As a male model, we are told, regardless of the product/article we’re promoting, to always try to appeal and sell to women. The reason? Everyone I’ve worked with has said that women are responsible for over 80% of the consumer dollars spent (I assume in the US only, but this might hold true elsewhere as well). If our ads can appeal to them, our product will sell more. With the exception of beer and pizza, and maybe a few truck or sports products, there is virtually NO advertising targeted specifically at men.
“men spend them in big chunks. HDTVs, big cars, you name it, men like them”
I’ve found this to be GENERALLY true. I don’t spend a lot of money, but I do like to get the big-ticket items like a tv from time to time. I guess I agree with the points you made. But this is also not true for everyone, as some men love to shop and some women hate it. Guess it depends on the individual.
I found this post to be a bunch of offensive stereotypical hooey. I am much more frugal than my husband, I research long-term investments (while his eyes glaze over), and my husband does all the grocery shopping because he actually likes to do it. I generally DON’T.. Every PERSON is different.
Everyone is right. Individual cases can differ greatly. I didn’t mean to suggest that these findings and supposedly expert opinion is a “one-size-fit-all” fact.
Please read this post for entertaining purposes only.
Hey David,
When you asked the first question,
do you think women or men spend more money?
Before I did any research on the topic and came up with the study and those expert opinions, I always thought that it was more broken down into age groups.
When we are all kids, it really doesn’t matter, but once we get into our teens, then women spend more money for makeup, clothes etc while the guys spend some money trying to get dates with the girls without much money left over for themselves.
As we age and get out of college, men start to spend some more money for themselves because of the increased purchasing power but still, a good percentage spend a sizable chunk of their earnings on trying to date women (paying for movies, dinners and gifts etc).
Then, as we start families and get older, the need for women to spend diminishes as they care more about the family than materialistic things like a hand bag, while men increase their spending as their income (and probably ego) increases.
So in summary, I always thought that women spend more in the earlier years and men spend more as they age.
That’s my subjective opinion based on people I know and it’s a generalization of course. The more important gauge of a person’s spending behavior is how frugal they were brought up to be and not so much the sex orientation. I just thought this subject was entertaining
Oops. Sorry using a different computer.
Anyway, back to the question:
“do you think women or men spend more money?”
My thoughts went along the lines of your post. I remember reading a marketing book about the power of the women’s pocket book or something like that and they said about what Wes Y said, “that women are responsible for over 80% of the consumer dollars spent.” One of the reasons is that women tend to shop for the whole family, too. Also, it seems like guys like to buy big ticket items.
I think a better question should be, “Do men or women spend a greater PERCENTAGE of their income on superfluous things?”
One man’s $50,000 purchase way outnumbers one woman’s purchase of even a Hermes Grace Kelley $7,000 hand bag + Manolo shoes for $600. Hence, I believe men spend way more than women.
My wife LOVES free stuff and spends next to nothing. I used to spend a lot, but have been influenced by my wife and also spend next to nothing. We enjoy the great outdoors, and hiking/biking are free to oh so cheap.
There’s always an exception, but this one seems to hold enough truth. (Before anybody kills me I’m a feminist, really I am). I’m female and I hate shopping (except for books and computer stuff, very very bad habit yikes.) but I’m clearly in the minority. I just started working for a retail store and they discussed in the orientation point blank that everything is designed for women. Even the men’s department. Because guys just want to get in, get out, be done with it. Women shop. You see the evidence in the fitting rooms, men’s room a couple of pairs of jeans, maybe a t-shirt. Women’s fitting room will have two or three pairs of jeans in eight different styles, 5 or 6 t-shirts, and of course the shoes and purses to match, etc.
However, some of the money issue can also boil down to where the societal pressures lie. Women are judged more on appearance in this society. In general how many guys wear makeup or get their hair done by a specific hairstylist? And who does the shopping, if my mom buys my dad’s shirts, that number is still probably attributed to her spending even though the items are for my dad. I suspect some of this may change as gender roles become more fluid.
you are not too much into the exception. I know more women who don’t like to shop than I know that do.
First, congratulations David. You are much braver than I am for posting this one. My hat is off to you.
It seems like my wife spends more money but I think in reality, I am more prone to impulse purchases. She spends money on more day-to-day items. Some of it on things I wouldn’t buy but then again, I buy stuff she’d never consider.
My experience tells me, bottom line, women are better with money than men. Call me a chauvinist.
There are scientific (usually psychological) studies done on this and results are inconclusive at best.
David, talking about money spending, I’m agreed with you here, as my girlfriend is usually spending more money for her cosmetics and dressings, rather than the household appliances.
Women are frequent shopper, whereas men shop rarely. But when men shop their expense is huge , whereas for women their expense is less.
Not all women like shopping.
THANK-YOU…. I hate shopping……..
me too. and my mother hates it, my sister, several of my female co-workers, etc… I buy in bulk the necessary items so I don’t have to return for several months. I hate spending money, love saving and have to pay off all the debt my husband accumulates.
I really think that the shopping gene depends on personality, preferences, and circumstance not gender. And of course your numbers are going to skewed towards women when you interview twice as many women than men. Also, men will NEVER admit that they like to browse, our society has deemed it as emasculating.
This may be true for consumer products but and not for businesses, but I haven’t done the research. And remember, numbers and statistics with good attributions are better evidence then “more likely”. That could be a 1% difference or 50%, there’s no way of telling.
This post is rediculous. How are they defining shopping? Are we saying “Shopping” is when you purchase something just for yourself. If we define it that way who’s to say woman or men “shop” more? Let’s decide that we define “shopping” as spending money in general. Well who buys groceries, buys hubby and kid’s clothes, pays the bills, runs the errands etc. … women. Honestly how could women not get pegged as the “shopaholic”.
Since you never actually answered the premise question–are we to assume women spend less (despite appearances), as you strongly suggest. That’s my answer. But then I think like a man–and also like a big, clear parking space right out front.
I don’t recognize myself or most of my friends in this post. Once when I put as my Facebook status that I wanted to “start a support group for Women Who Loathe Shopping But Still Don’t Want to to Look Like Hoboes” TONS of my female friends voiced their mutual loathing for shopping and desire for such a group.
As the wife in a partnership where I manage the money and scrutinize every purchase and where I was the one to urge buying a home and investing more in retirement. I could attribute this to being an arts professional and city-dwelling Gen-Xer and thus less gender-typical than older, suburban-dwelling people but it also doesn’t sound like my baby-boomer father and stepmother: He’s frugal enough but still buys big-ticket items like trips and machinery while my stepmother’s entertainment consists of checking out library books. That said, I “spend” more money because I work shorter hours and thus take on both money management and most of the family shopping.
I don’t understand this brief post — it’s filled with essentially no data or studies to support what amounts to the writer’s unoriginal and not very deeply-thought-out opinion.
My husband spends while I save. He’ll buy fishing and hunting license though he’ll only use it maybe 3 times a year, but not hunt. He won’t bring fish home even though I like fish, but he’ll tell me to go buy fish, yet he tells me to clip coupons. I spend but I wait for sales and buy for the family things we’ll use. It is stressful when we don’t share this need to save.