AMERICANS SPEND $1,652 PER YEAR ON “RETAIL THERAPY”

A new survey of 2,000 people across the country found that the average American polled spends a whopping $1,652 per year on purchases just to cheer themselves up. The new poll, conducted by Swap.com, looked at the way Americans shop and found that the typical person buys 12 retail items per month in stores and six online.
– More than two-thirds of people say that shopping has some therapeutic qualities, and seven in 10 admit to having bought themselves something nice simply to cheer themselves up, with 13 percent saying they do this on a very regular basis.
– Seven in ten say they shop thrift stores in the hopes of finding a great deal.
– The average retail therapy session sets an American back $70.60, and happens about twice a month.
– Over a quarter say retail therapy is as good as eating at your favorite restaurant, while 20 percent equate it with a day at the beach or watching a favorite movie.
– 40 percent admit that they feel guilty after engaging in retail therapy, with two in three lamenting that they should have spent the money on something more important.
* $1,652 per year, or if you count lottery tickets, triple that number.
* “Retail therapy” because it sounds so much better than “Depression Shopping”.
* These are the same 2,000 people who will complain about higher taxes.
* This message just in from amazon.com: “We urge our customers to ignore stories like this and keep purchasing, or we’re going to have to pay you a little visit.”
* PHONE TOPIC: Did you ever make a large purchase, only to immediately regret it?