When it comes from shopping, Men are from Sears, Women are from Nordstrom!
As mentioned in Friday’s blog, in keeping with my promise to pen more “male-oriented” blogs (for the 6 men who actually read this blog), I did some research on items that Men like to buy which make them Happy…Do not try this at home and google it as the smut can possibly crash your computer. Word of Advice…Never google “Men and Pleasure buy” and think you are going to come up with watches, electronics and shoes. It won’t happen!
Thank you to my contributors Bruce, Andrew, Chad, Mark, Terry, Noel, Ken, Jack, Steve and Jason!
And ladies, take note, I have 10 fabulous holiday gift ideas layed out for you to buy your favorite male. These are in no particular order, so #1 can be as important as #10. 
1. Eating Out; Food and Kitchen Gadgets - According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest poll, the average guy spends about $1,800 per year eating out while ladies spend $1,145. Food never once graced the Women’s list, btw. Men also love to cook and love to cook with the newest gadgets as well. And in a shameless attempt to get back into my good graces, one contributor mentioned “oysters”…which just so happens to be my newest obsession.
2. Electronics and Video Games – Flat Screen TV’s; Computers (they change them like underwear – JG) ; Phones (always have to have the newest and used to be the “smallest”); iPad; Video Games, and stereo equipment. Unfortuntaely it was mentioned that guys like electronics “to watch the smut”. I did Not see that coming!
3. Sports Tickets and Equipment - Men will spend their last dime to pay for a ticket to a Must-See game; or to pay for the subscription for the Big Fight! Golf Clubs and Accessories also topped this category, while several specifically mentioned Under Armour athletic gear, so that’s clearly a favorite. Basically any type of athletic apparel or sports gear makes men happy!
4. Alcoholic Beverages – Beer! Though it appears Vodka is the new Stella. And Mark was clearly sucking up to me indicating a great bottle of wine!
5. Cars – Men do love their cars…though I have males friends who say they could care less about cars…not sure I buy that. And they love to get their cars washed! That’s one of the downfalls of Kevin working in San Fran, I have to wash my own car…ugh. And this is NOT my car (obviously) but it came up when I googled Grey Goose…go figure.
6. Watch - my friend Jason was tickled when he was able to buy himself a fabulous Tag Heur watch…For our 10-year anniversary, I bought Kevin a Rolex…I know he appreciated it, and still wears it everyday some 21 years later, but I think he always dreamt of buying his own, so perhaps he would have preferred to buy it for himself.
7. Clothing – though from personal experience and that of my friends, with a few exceptions, women buy the men their clothes. Yet, most men did mention clothing. Not one of them mentioned a specific item, as women did with a little black dress, or jeans. Men just lumped it all into “clothes”. Men are easy.
8. Shoes - Who knew Men loves these as much as women! Shoes made 50% of the responses. Not 1 man mentioned Flip Flops either!!
9. Musical Instruments – this only showed up in one response, but since I am singing a duet with my buddy Noel at my sales meeting this December, I thought it prudent of me to include this response. My musical instrument will be my voice and tamborine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AK9QVN0bpa4
10. Things for their kids – I have chosen not to use any names re: specifics, but shall make an exception here…Hats off to Jason! Buying things for his kids makes him happy.
I have to say I’m rather shocked that “buying something pretty or fabulous” for their significant other did not show up in my male friend’s responses! Thankfully I didn’t poll Kevin for this blog. And one man did mention “Save”, which I find boring, so didn’t put it into the list, but felt it was deserving of a mention, as it’s a mature way to look one’s future…It’s not all about shopping! Who knew?!
And speaking of kids, I also surveyed the “under-21″ crowd, and while some of their responses mirrored the above, there were a few new gems. Oh, and thank you Patrick, Blake, Matt and Cade.
1. Hats – of course – baseball hats! Patrick must have 100, and now boys are wearing those “flat bill” ones, which I don’t care for.
2. Cologne. – I bit my tongue, and did Not recommend to these young men, “Grey Flannel”, which is my personal favorite…that would ensure these boys NEVER wear it.
3. Shoes – Patrick has probably more than 40 pairs of athletic shoes…and if his feet haven’t grown to a size 13, he’d be able to wear all of them. I guess this is where that line “apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” came from. Many of his friends seem to have the same love of shoes.
4. Hair Products – – of course! These boys are Always well-coifed!!!!
Funny enough, Electronics, did NOT make their list…of course that’s because their parent’s buy these for them As Blake mentioned, “my Dad is the one who buys everything on apple.com”. So noted.
How are men and women different when it comes to shopping? Aside from the obvious choices, there is actually research on this very important subject:
Women are happy to meander through sprawling clothing and accessory collections or detour through the shoe department. They like to glide up glass escalators past a grand piano, or spray a perfume sample on themselves on their way to, maybe, making a purchase. For men, shopping is a mission. They are out to buy a targeted item and flee the store as quickly as possible.
“Women tend to be more invested in the shopping experience on many dimensions,” says Robert Price, chief marketing officer at CVS Caremark and a member of the Baker advisory board. “Men want to go to Sears, buy a specific tool and get out.”
Source: Wharton’s Jay H. Baker Retail Initiative and the Verde Group
How to Shop like a Man
Men focus on comfort, high quality and price. That’s it. They don’t care if it’s a flat front pair of pants or if they are pleated. As long as they don’t look like a fool, the clothing is priced right and makes them feel good, they’re sold. As I’ve always said…Men are so easy.
- Look for comfort
- Look for better quality (although some feel they get shortchanged)
- Be less into trends and fads (Women’s clothing is much more “faddish” than men’s)
- Don’t focus on the logo or the brand (though I disagree as many men I know are all about labels)
- Scrunch up the fabric in your hand in a tight ball to test it (classic, and isn’t this a great visual)
- Feel good in it (I think this goes for both men and women)
And there you have it! No real surprises here, but glad I went through this exercise.
and Go Bears…Beat the Eagles!!
xoxo,
T.
Related articles
- Top 10 Pleasure Buys (Get your mind out of the gutter…this is a Family-Friendly blog) (dressedtoat.wordpress.com)
- Men’s Summer Fashion Faux Pas (dressedtoat.wordpress.com)
