A female friend of mine, who will remain nameless, enjoys the occasional trip to the shops. Now there’s an understatement! In fact, it has been known for the shopping centre staff to roll out the red carpet on her arrival and get some poor fella to carry bags and bags of new clothes for her while she browses the rails and ponders her next purchase, sometimes for hours. Ok, so I exaggerate slightly, but I’ve always seen her as a good barometer of consumer confidence. Forget all those banking suits and economic analysts – no, for years my friend has unwittingly been providing me with a litmus test of how willing people are to part with their money. The trouble is, she’s now started doing something I hadn’t previously anticipated.

In fact, there’s a new word for it – ‘unshopping’. That’s right, my friend has managed to preserve the thrill of the chase that so adrenalises shopaholics, while at the same time minimising the financial impact on her bank balance and assuaging a debt of guilt to her now more fiscally fearful conscience. Here’s how it goes: wander round the shops as before, buy whatever new and trendy clothes catch your eye, try them on if necessary and then head home. A few days, maybe even months later, having been careful to keep your receipt in a safe place (in the cupboard where all your expensive apparel used to live, for example), take said items back to the shops and get your money back. It’s just like having a bank account – at present, the interest rates are indeed comparable – only you get a temporarily well-stocked wardrobe instead of the paltry free gift that only a few bank managers still bestow upon their customers nowadays.

Thankfully, there is no danger of unshopping affecting the fresh produce business. “I’d like to return these peaches.” “Certainly sir, how long have you had them?” “Erm, since last season, I think.” “Okaaaaaay…”. However, the fact that unshopping now exists underlines how nervy consumers are. As soon as she starts shopping again, you’ll be the first to know.

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