Going shopping to an actual store can be a real hassle. As you go through floors and floors of unorganized piles of clothing items, it often leaves you frustrated and exhausted. Luckily, thanks to the innovative technology there is a plethora of ways to get your desired items whilst not even leaving the comfort of your sofa.

Instagram

Instagram is extremely useful when it comes to shopping online. Many brands and businesses use Instagram to showcase their products as an easy and effective way to reach a wide audience. With the help of influencers, who flaunt their clothes and day to day items, it's easy to find what you are looking for. If a certain T-shirt on your Insta feed catches your eye, worry not! You don't have to go on an endless search, going from store to store. Most influencers always tag brands and stores in their photos, videos and stories. And if that wasn't easy enough - you can actually buy products in the app itself with Instagram’s new checkout feature. A lot of brands and influencers also give discount codes that can save you loads of money, and that's just one of the perks of online shopping.

Online stores

Over the years shopping online has managed to overshadow the old ways of going to malls and department stores. It is said that around 79% of consumers in America shop online regularly, with a whopping 67% of millennials, who actually prefer online shopping over going to stores. With the ever-growing fever of online shopping, Amazon has become one of most beloved online marketplaces in the world with a wide array of products from third parties. The company even surpassed Walmart as the most valuable retailer in the United States. Sometimes you just don't want to leave the house and socialize, or spend hours and hours on your feet whilst waiting in long lines. That's why online shopping is so pleasing - it's both effortless and practical. You can get a lot of inspiration for vintage looks and others that aren’t always seen in stores; for instance, you can buy Crocs online in so many different patterns and colours to pair up with outfits you wouldn’t have even thought of.

Thrifting online

Shopping for second-hand clothes is thrilling on its own; you never know what kind of gems you'll find in piles of clothes. There is a certain charm in thrifting, especially considering the prices that are sometimes less than half of the original cost. But, there is always a downside because second-hand shops are often not organized that well and they sell things that are donated or unwanted – usually not the trendiest of pieces. Thankfully, with the help of social media and apps, buying second hand clothes is possible online as well - meaning you can snag cute and dirt cheap clothes without making an effort! Sites make thrifting online ten times easier as they categorize their items to personalize the shopping experience. They also make sure that the clothes are in good condition, so you don't have to! Plenty of fashionistas who buy tons of clothes to feature them in hauls or blog posts resell them after wearing them only once, so you can get new, trendy pieces that just don’t fit in someone’s closet.

It is safe to say that malls and department stores are slowly losing their purpose with the overgrowing power of online shopping. And as the technology progresses, who knows what the future of shopping holds. Will we experience the extinction of stores and malls? Or maybe we will miss the good old in-store shopping, but instead of actually doing it, we will do it by using virtual reality? Well, no matter how much easier shopping online is, there really isn’t a way to beat the therapeutic experience a trip to the mall can have!