Shopping fanatics turn to internet
Joel Pavelski
Issue date: 2/5/09 Section: Focus
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If you're looking for tobacco, coffee or hardware you may have come to the right place. Otherwise, you might want to shop somewhere else.
As sophomore Kate Oliveri said, "A shopping addict would have to be an idiot to go to Hillsdale."
And so, forced by the spotty downtown landscape to make a choice, on-campus shopping fiends make shopping a weekend hobby or go online.
According to the consumer surveyor Greenfield Online, 81 percent of college students make purchases online, and 42 percent of those purchases are clothing. Around here, a computer is not just the fastest way to shopaholic bliss - it's the only way.
Meet junior Mary Kate Cavazos. She is a bona fide retail junkie. Her room is full of approximately 600 articles of clothing, including at least 15 pieces she's never worn. To contain it all, she's put up extra clothing racks and borrowed a dresser from a resident assistant.
"I had a cleaning lady who said she's lived here for 30 years and she's never seen so many pieces of clothing in one place," Cavazos said.
Her freshman year, she said she was "out of control." J. Crew and Nordstrom boxes would arrive at her dorm with new clothing every week.
Out of boredom and procrastination, Cavazos and a friend would sit at the computer, going from one Web site to another, picking out clothing that they liked.
"On most of the websites, you can see your order histories so you don't order the same thing twice or in the same color," she said.
By her sophomore year, it was a great way to meet people, she said. Girls would just come by her room and ask to borrow things.
"I've gotten better, but I should be more conscientious," she said. "My parents are generous so I never have to look at my bank statement."
Of course, for the bargain shopper, there's always a thrift store or two. Or, ask sophomore Alice Arnn to show you the thrift store's online equivalent - eBay.
Arnn, who estimates that she does 40 percent of her shopping online, likes to shop for dresses on eBay.
"I've found great J. Crew dresses there," she said.
Arnn said she never shopped that much. She's from Hillsdale. She buys something on Ebay every month or so. Last fall, she bought a beautiful coat for just $75.
"I'm talking cheap here; I'm not dropping a lot of money. I'm a deal shopper," she said.
The advantages to the online auction website are many, according to Arnn. Items are much cheaper on eBay, you have to look harder through the website's enormous selection, and you aren't tempted to buy as much, she said. If you find something you like on the site you have to keep track of it, and check back every few days to assure that you're still the highest bidder.
"I know people who are much worse about eBay than I am, so that makes me feel better about it," she said.
Still, some haven't given up on the tangible hanger, racks and cloth. Freshman Erin Alderson said she doesn't like to go shopping alone. She enjoys spending time with her friends or family in the mall.
"My mom and my sister are window shoppers, but I go to a store with intent, if I need a new sweater or pair of jeans. But I go shopping for the social aspect," she said.
Alderson is from New Jersey, right outside of New York City, and enjoys most the large Ann Taylor Loft stores around Manhattan.
"I once went to four different Lofts with my boyfriend to find a jacket that I wanted," she said.
Alderson considers herself a shopping junkie, but not a buying addict. She couldn't go shopping alone.
"One thing I hate about this school is the lack of shopping," she said. "Where I'm from, the opportunity for shopping just presents itself."
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