PATRICIA KOH
'Value Seeking Newly-wed' An accountant who prefers bright colours & embroidery in her dresses.
OBSERVATION DAY
The subject (Patricia Koh) is Vanessa’s friend. She is a newly-wed and working as an accountant in Singapore. She was aware that she was being observed, however the observation was to be treated like a normal activity with her friend and she had no clue of the brand Vanessa was studying.
Thursday, 31st January 2013
Patricia and I met in town at about 4pm. She wanted to visit H&M and Zara in search of Chinese New Year outfits. We went to the outlet at 313 Somerset. H&M was pretty crowded hence this made her shopping pace slower than usual. When she walked into the store, she browsed through the store before going for shift and formal looking dresses. She also prefers those that are more structured and fitting to the body shape. She actually wanted to take a look at the male and kids section to see what she can pick out for her husband and nephew, however as it was too crowded that day, she gave it a miss.
She decided to head to Zara after that. At Zara, she browsed through the store with no particular interest in purchasing anything and looked with more interest at the sales section since it is more worth the money. She searched for the same type of clothing she looked for at H&M.
We only managed to leave the store after 1 hour 15 minutes with minimal shopping. This is probably due to the crowd that day and the collection in both stores also did not interest my subject much.
Despite me telling her to continue looking for clothes, she prefers not to as she feels guilty that I have to wait for her. Patricia is one who prefers to shop alone so that she has less time pressure and can spend more time considering what she might want to purchase so that she doesn’t regret a buy.
After which, we had an early dinner at Yomenya Goemon, a Japanese spaghetti restaurant at the same place. Both Patricia and I ordered spaghetti instead of the recommended set dinner due to cost. She believes that the set meal is not value for money.
Later on, we headed over to Tampines to search for her winter essentials for an upcoming holiday in Italy. She first went to Winter Time at Tampines Mall in search for some winter coats. She shortlisted some items but didn’t purchase any as she felt that it would be better to get her husband’s opinion considering that the coats are relatively more expensive. Hence, we only spent about 20 minutes in the store.
Next, we went to Uniqlo at Tampines One where she bought winter accessories such as thermal wear and socks as it was one of the stores that sold quality items which are reasonably priced. She initially wanted to purchase heat packs as well but I told her I had some at home and she can use them for her holiday.
The observation ended at about 10pm when the mall closed.
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
What motivated you to go shopping today?
I taught for a long day and needed to purchase items for my honeymoon and Chinese New Year. Anyway, shopping is a way for me to de-stress and girls do not need to be motivated to go shopping.
How urgent/important is it for you to get the items? Why?
Nope it is not important. I will get it sooner or later on other shopping trips.
What brands/shops you considered when getting this item?
Uniqlo and Winter Time for winter clothes. Zara, H&M, Mango, ASOS for others.
Why did you list these brands?
For Uniqlo and Winter Time, these are "specialized" items for the winter wear. It will be easier to find what I need given that Singapore has summer all year round.
As for the others, these are the brands I usually shop at.
How important are these attributes to you?
Not very important but it just makes searching easier.
What made you enter the store/mall?
Sales.
Is this always the case for you?
Most of the time.
What did you buy today?
Thermal wear and socks.
Are you happy with your purchase?
Yes. It is value for money and the quality is good.
Why did you not purchase the items?
I didn’t purchase the dresses I picked out as it didn’t fit me well.
