7/6/25: On consumerism
Because some of you still think I make my toilet paper by hand or something...
I went to the mall on Friday.
This might not seem like news, but I haven’t been since Christmastime so it was a bit strange. It’s funny how much our habits shape us. There was a time where I spent as much time as I possibly could at the mall, then there was a time where I worked there, and even after I started working in Concord I’d still pop in often to cruise around and shop.
But lately I haven’t really wanted to. The brands I love now aren’t found at the mall anymore. The fabrics I love aren’t found there, either, at least not as prevalently. It’s been replaced with thrifting, and now whenever I have a spare moment I’m at Goodwill or Savers. It’s the same dopamine rush of a TJ Maxx, when you think about it. It’s a mishmash of items in an environment where you don’t know what you’re going to find, one you don’t always go to with a specific thing in mind… you usually go to see what finds you.
I went because I had heard about this lotion at Bath & Body Works that smells like tomato. Tomato lotion?! I know, I know, but I have this candle I buy at Penumbra that smells like tomato leaves and other stuff, and I really love it, so I thought I’d better check out this lotion situation since it had potential.
When I checked it out, it smelled more like cologne than the tomato leaf vibe I was hoping for, but I decided to grab a lotion and a mini spray. I’m not used to the synthetic feel behind the scent, as now I’ve been buying Cosh lotion and soaps for years. Cosh’s perfectionist attitude toward formulas and the science side of what they do is something I value greatly. The people next to me at Bath & Body Works were balking at the price of a candle and I remembered that my favorite candle that costs $24 is what brought me here. The lotion I bought was about $17, and the same size as the $20 lotion I buy from Cosh. How funny that the line between mass produced and small batch is perception and a couple of dollars.
When I buy the Cosh items, I am at Bona Fide down the street from the shop, and then I stock up on the stuff Bona Fide doesn’t regularly sell at Market Days. To me, that’s convenient because I work downtown and I’m always at Market Days. If I worked at the mall, Bath & Body Works would be the way to go to save time and energy, for sure. And I’m guessing that’s what I did then, although my soaps and lotions were not memorable to me. I might have used Victoria’s Secret, to be honest!
Now, they are meaningful enough to accidentally write an entire post about. I guess it’s because there’s a story there. Something about the journey to remember. In all of my mall-going, I don’t really remember much about the act of shopping really, and the items themselves don’t stick out to me unless I did something while wearing them that made me remember. But I love telling people about Cosh and how much I love it and how well it works for me. My husband, best friend, and even my very picky mother all swear by it and I’m getting a bit of deja vu and feeling like this isn’t even the first time I’ve mentioned this company in my newsletter… which proves my point doesn’t it?
This mall trip made me realize even more how much I now value the slowness of letting things find me. The real life doom scroll that is going through the thrift store versus the TJ Maxx now, because my personal taste is more developed now.
This is not a declaration of superiority, or a thinly veiled humble brag about what a local shopper I am. It’s meant to be my way of unpacking the journey of my buying habits. I used to be H&M in Salem’s most frequent flyer, and if any one particular mall store happened to be my style I would still cruise it all the time for deals. I bought items at the mall in various shops and I felt the feeling of walking around the mall with a couple of shopping bags again. I may end up going more because I remembered Auntie Anne’s is a thing, and a thing I like very much. I was surprised though that I felt like I had to walk sooooo much compared to shopping downtown.
But I will still use my spare moments here and there for thrifting, because that is who I am now. It’s not a zero sum game, consumption. Yesterday I operated a small business and bought decorations for my kid’s birthday party on Amazon. Yes, Amazon! I shop on there sometimes! I have an ADHD-friendly office chair headed my way right now off of Amazon, a little treat for myself because I always buy myself one “work present” after Market Days. I shop in ways I don’t like sometimes! This is life! I share of my values and of best practices because we can all benefit from the information. I share of my corporate consumption because I know no one is perfect and I want to be transparent about how I hate the powers that be, but also benefit from fast shipping and cheap prices for certain things. Now, I just use these things for the items I cannot find at my friend’s shops on Main Street and beyond. The cat still needs litter. The house still needed a new couch, one that couldn’t be bought at a consignment shop this time.
Cosh has gotten so popular that you can now buy their items at Whole Foods, and I bet a lot of people don’t even realize they’re supporting a small business when they buy them there. I bet they just think it smells really good and that the price is reasonable. Or maybe expensive, because it’s at Whole Foods. Or maybe cheap, because it’s at Whole Foods. The perception game is so interesting.
You will make those decisions too, and I hope you make whichever one is best for you. Even if it feels kinda weird in the moment.
‘til next time,
E