I now understand why people give in to stupid sales and buy unnecessary things..
I didn't buy anything unnecessary, but I gave out my phone number and address :( stupid me..
I went to a shopping mall near by my parents' home today. The mall went under face-lift and re-opened few months ago. So everything were new, and old stores I remember were either gone or moved to new spots. I saw a Kimono store moved up to the 3rd floor (used ot be on the 2nd floor). I looked at some yukata (summer kimono) at the store. They had few good designs, but most of them are $300 or up. I need to think about it and shop around for at least few days before purchasing things with this kind of price.
Yukata has been a huge trend for last few years. I remember 4 years ago, I needed geta (wooden sandals) that match my yukata, and I had to go to a very old part of my home town and found a tiny geta shop looked like it's been there for more than 100 years. It didn't look like they have many customers. I bought a pair that the shop owner guy had to wipe off a thick layer of dust from them.
Now they are everywhere. It's so popular and you don't have to look for yukata and geta. They are sold in wal-mart like one stop shopping stores now. They are many "set" deals for those who don't have proper belts and sandals this year. I thought about buying one set for my friends daughter, and looked at some. Most of sets are for $100, which is pretty good deal. They are some $50 or less deals, but you can tell the quality of fabric or prints are not good.
Anyhow, I left the kimono store. Then I saw another store, which seemed just opened, on the same floor. I was looking at some yukata at the entrance. Then I saw some more, priced about $80 in the store so I walked in. While I was browsing at $80 yukata, a young sales guy started talking to me. I should have left then. But the yukata I was looking at wasn't too bad, so I told him I'm looking for one for a young girl.
Then he told me that they are having a sale, and flipped the price tag of the yukata I was looking at. I saw there was another tag under $80, and it was $40 for a set deal including a pair of geta, a belt and a bag to go with the yukata. OK, it's a good deal, bit something fishy, I thought. It seemed too cheap. I looked at the yukata, and it didn't look too bad. But geta usually cost at least $50 for a pair and the bags going with Kimono are usually like $100. Another fishy thing was, the sales price tag was UNDER the normal price tag. Don't stores usually have sales price tag on TOP of the regular price tag?
But I thought that maybe they are having an opening sale for the store, so I decided to buy the set. It seemd that it wold be very nice that I don't have to buy geta and belt separately. I picked a pair of geta, belt and bag. Geta were actually different from what I thought. They weren't traditional ones like mine. They were more like wooden sandals like the ones you can buy in the US, but painted like Japanese geta. But it's ok. The pair wasn't bad and it came with rubber bottoms layer like shoes, so it won't make loud noise like mine does. The pair looked beautiful and had hand painted rabbit motif. The belt also had rabbits and looked pretty decent quality.
I was about to pay, and the sales guy made me wait at a table while he was talking to a lady behind casher machine. So far, nothing seemed wrong. But I was still wondering if there is a catch for this deal. He came back without bill, and instead, with paper to signing up for a prize. I thought "OK, this must be it". This was like Skitles iPod prize. You need to give out your personal information before winning. I registed against my greed for wanting an iPod and didn't sign up for Skitles prize, but this time, I couldn't prevent myself to give out my address.
The casher lady was taking very loooooong time to prepare the $40 bill, and I had enough time to "sign up". Later I thought I could've said "I'm busy and I have to go", but probaly it didn't work since the lady was taking very long time preparing the bill and taking price tags off from the yukata. So I signed up, but there was a section "do you want to receive news about the store" and I was supposed to circle one from "off course", "occasionally" and "no". He pressed me to answer other questions, like "what kind of color you like?" but he didn't care about this question. Looking back, I guess he was going to circle "off course" after I left if I didn't answer this question. Usually I say "no" when I sign up something like this in the US. So I circled "no". Then sales guy begged me to circle on "occasionally", because he won't get a "point" if I circle "no". OK, I'm too nice, and I circled "occasionally" (but I didn't cross off "no").
Then he tried to make me write my age. I registed. He let me leave tit blank, but now I'm sure that he guessed and wrote in something after I left. This kind of information is important in Japan since many people go through steps in their life, like graduating, marrying and having kids, in the age they are supposed to. At such occasions in Japan, there are customs we need to follow, like giving certain gifts and dressing in certain ways. Many bisunesses live on Japanese people's willingness to spend money to avoid being improper or seen too stingy. So knowing someone's age is a big adavantage for stores, so they can send junk mails to remind customers to buy proper gifts or clothes from them for coming up occasions.
Komono stores are often high pressure like car dealers in the US. Yukatas are very exceptionally cheap kimono. Normal kimono are really expensive. Normal ones are few - several thousand dollars. Until few years ago, Kimono stores were hard to step in, because of fear of ending up commiting to expensive kimono. Once you buy one kimono, the stores start sending junk mails to make you buy more. Kimono has strict codes, like which one is OK to wear when you visit someone important or going to a wedding party etc. Depending on your age, there are kimonos you are not supposed to wear too. So once you buy one, you start buying more and more kimono for various occasions.
After registing for several minutes, I ended up giving out my info. The sales guy was really good at making me write the information. :( and it was getting late, and I was becoming frustrated and wasted to leave the store. It seemed like only way to get out from the store was finish signing up for the prize. The store was also so close to my place, so I thought it hard to make up address.. I thought the sale guy might be able to point out "mistakes" if I make up an address which doesn't exist.
I hope this won't be like visiting Toyota car dealer shop in the US..
I didn't buy anything unnecessary, but I gave out my phone number and address :( stupid me..
I went to a shopping mall near by my parents' home today. The mall went under face-lift and re-opened few months ago. So everything were new, and old stores I remember were either gone or moved to new spots. I saw a Kimono store moved up to the 3rd floor (used ot be on the 2nd floor). I looked at some yukata (summer kimono) at the store. They had few good designs, but most of them are $300 or up. I need to think about it and shop around for at least few days before purchasing things with this kind of price.
Yukata has been a huge trend for last few years. I remember 4 years ago, I needed geta (wooden sandals) that match my yukata, and I had to go to a very old part of my home town and found a tiny geta shop looked like it's been there for more than 100 years. It didn't look like they have many customers. I bought a pair that the shop owner guy had to wipe off a thick layer of dust from them.
Now they are everywhere. It's so popular and you don't have to look for yukata and geta. They are sold in wal-mart like one stop shopping stores now. They are many "set" deals for those who don't have proper belts and sandals this year. I thought about buying one set for my friends daughter, and looked at some. Most of sets are for $100, which is pretty good deal. They are some $50 or less deals, but you can tell the quality of fabric or prints are not good.
Anyhow, I left the kimono store. Then I saw another store, which seemed just opened, on the same floor. I was looking at some yukata at the entrance. Then I saw some more, priced about $80 in the store so I walked in. While I was browsing at $80 yukata, a young sales guy started talking to me. I should have left then. But the yukata I was looking at wasn't too bad, so I told him I'm looking for one for a young girl.
Then he told me that they are having a sale, and flipped the price tag of the yukata I was looking at. I saw there was another tag under $80, and it was $40 for a set deal including a pair of geta, a belt and a bag to go with the yukata. OK, it's a good deal, bit something fishy, I thought. It seemed too cheap. I looked at the yukata, and it didn't look too bad. But geta usually cost at least $50 for a pair and the bags going with Kimono are usually like $100. Another fishy thing was, the sales price tag was UNDER the normal price tag. Don't stores usually have sales price tag on TOP of the regular price tag?
But I thought that maybe they are having an opening sale for the store, so I decided to buy the set. It seemd that it wold be very nice that I don't have to buy geta and belt separately. I picked a pair of geta, belt and bag. Geta were actually different from what I thought. They weren't traditional ones like mine. They were more like wooden sandals like the ones you can buy in the US, but painted like Japanese geta. But it's ok. The pair wasn't bad and it came with rubber bottoms layer like shoes, so it won't make loud noise like mine does. The pair looked beautiful and had hand painted rabbit motif. The belt also had rabbits and looked pretty decent quality.
I was about to pay, and the sales guy made me wait at a table while he was talking to a lady behind casher machine. So far, nothing seemed wrong. But I was still wondering if there is a catch for this deal. He came back without bill, and instead, with paper to signing up for a prize. I thought "OK, this must be it". This was like Skitles iPod prize. You need to give out your personal information before winning. I registed against my greed for wanting an iPod and didn't sign up for Skitles prize, but this time, I couldn't prevent myself to give out my address.
The casher lady was taking very loooooong time to prepare the $40 bill, and I had enough time to "sign up". Later I thought I could've said "I'm busy and I have to go", but probaly it didn't work since the lady was taking very long time preparing the bill and taking price tags off from the yukata. So I signed up, but there was a section "do you want to receive news about the store" and I was supposed to circle one from "off course", "occasionally" and "no". He pressed me to answer other questions, like "what kind of color you like?" but he didn't care about this question. Looking back, I guess he was going to circle "off course" after I left if I didn't answer this question. Usually I say "no" when I sign up something like this in the US. So I circled "no". Then sales guy begged me to circle on "occasionally", because he won't get a "point" if I circle "no". OK, I'm too nice, and I circled "occasionally" (but I didn't cross off "no").
Then he tried to make me write my age. I registed. He let me leave tit blank, but now I'm sure that he guessed and wrote in something after I left. This kind of information is important in Japan since many people go through steps in their life, like graduating, marrying and having kids, in the age they are supposed to. At such occasions in Japan, there are customs we need to follow, like giving certain gifts and dressing in certain ways. Many bisunesses live on Japanese people's willingness to spend money to avoid being improper or seen too stingy. So knowing someone's age is a big adavantage for stores, so they can send junk mails to remind customers to buy proper gifts or clothes from them for coming up occasions.
Komono stores are often high pressure like car dealers in the US. Yukatas are very exceptionally cheap kimono. Normal kimono are really expensive. Normal ones are few - several thousand dollars. Until few years ago, Kimono stores were hard to step in, because of fear of ending up commiting to expensive kimono. Once you buy one kimono, the stores start sending junk mails to make you buy more. Kimono has strict codes, like which one is OK to wear when you visit someone important or going to a wedding party etc. Depending on your age, there are kimonos you are not supposed to wear too. So once you buy one, you start buying more and more kimono for various occasions.
After registing for several minutes, I ended up giving out my info. The sales guy was really good at making me write the information. :( and it was getting late, and I was becoming frustrated and wasted to leave the store. It seemed like only way to get out from the store was finish signing up for the prize. The store was also so close to my place, so I thought it hard to make up address.. I thought the sale guy might be able to point out "mistakes" if I make up an address which doesn't exist.
I hope this won't be like visiting Toyota car dealer shop in the US..
