What Is 'Slow Shopping'?

From TikTok Shop and targeted Instagram ads to influencer hauls and product roundups, our modern commercial landscape allows consumers to spend half their paychecks in mere minutes.

“Online shopping makes impulse purchases easier than ever,” said Jack Howard, head of money wellness at Ally Financial. “Stores are literally right at our fingertips. In the moment, buying exactly what you want, when you want it, feels great. But after? That’s when the regret starts seeping in, and it’s all too common.”

She noted that in a recent Ally survey, over 1 in 3 shoppers said they are likely to buy something impulsively to feel better about themselves, but only half said they felt happy after doing so.

To combat this toxic temptation, many consumers are taking a completely different approach: slow shopping.

What is ‘slow shopping’?

“Slow shopping is a financial trend that pushes people to be more intentional with their spending and purchases, focusing on being more mindful with what you’re buying, why you’re buying it and how much you’re spending on the purchase,” said consumer finance and budgeting expert Andrea Woroch. “Rather than jumping on impulse to buy something as soon as a want or desire arises, slow shopping encourages you to think through the purchase in order to make the best buying decision for your budget, giving you time to evaluate need, cost and value.”

There’s an emphasis on quality over quantity as you shop with intentionality ― the opposite of impulse buying. Through this practice, you consider your budget and financial situation, and appraise your purchases as investments.

“Slow shopping is essentially taking a more deliberate and mindful approach to shopping,” said Bola Sokunbi, the founder of Clever Girl