The pandemic forced the entire world to a standstill. Many of us spent the better part of a year indoors in isolation. As we slowly begin to transition into the new normal, it’s essential to look at the habits we established during the lockdowns. Though the pandemic has had devastating consequences on businesses’ bottom lines, we’ve also seen positive outcomes.
There’s been an increase in overall savings across various people involved in different industries, which makes sense because we can now access things other than the necessities during the pandemic. Economies are slowly opening up, and new businesses are also starting to appear on the market. It might be time to spend that hard-earned money you ended up saving while things were closed.
“Revenge spending” has been a trend we’ve been seeing in consumers. After being limited on what we could spend on for a prolonged period, we’re now looking forward to finally being able to spend our money the way we want to again. It’s easy to go a little overboard on spending.
It’s important to remember to set aside funds for the important things, like your bills, health care, and investments, but that if you’re looking for that feel-good purchase, though? What if you’re interested in spending your money to help get back that sense of normalcy? Here are just some examples of what you could spend your money on that feels good and doesn’t break the bank.
Food
Whether you choose to buy everything on the grocery list of your dreams or start ordering from your favorite restaurants again, spending on food is always a good idea. After spending so much time indoors and only eating what was readily available to us, getting that cup of coffee, ordering your favorite burger, or having a second order of pizza are all good ways to feel normal again. If the time spent indoors has caused you to develop healthier eating habits, as it has for many of us, switching your protein sources and going organic are also great items to spend on. They say you are what you eat, and it’s never a bad idea to splurge on food.
Self-care
The stress associated with the pandemic has taken its toll on our physical and mental health. Reinvesting our savings into ourselves in the form of self-care is a significant step to a better mind and body. Self-care can take on many different forms. It can be as simple as taking time on the weekends to take a long relaxing bath and listen to your favorite music or investing in virtual therapy sessions to work through some of the stress and anxiety we developed during the lockdown.
Both of these options leave you feeling better about yourself and what’s to come. Self-care can also mean investing in some excellent loungewear to wear while we work from home. Looking great helps us feel great. Ditching the old sweats or worn-out sweats we’ve been wearing for sharper, smarter loungewear options can help get us in a better mindset to tackle the day.
Investment pieces
There’s a known economic principle called “The lipstick effect” that states consumers continue to spend money on small luxuries even in times of financial difficulties. We shift our spending patterns to still allow moderate splurges to feel fulfillment from our purchases still. This can result in choosing cheaper alternatives for purchases, but this can also manifest in focusing on investment pieces.
Online jewelry stores have become increasingly popular during a pandemic for both and women. Women are looking to elevate their zoom meetings with a great pair of earrings or a statement necklace. Men are also investing in watches built to last and iced-out rings for men, making bold statements during meetings and after work hours.
Travel
What’s perhaps the most popular desire to splurge on post-pandemic would be our urge to start traveling again. This poses a lot of logistical planning needs but the right destination and planning to travel again will help shake off the cabin fever symptoms we developed in lockdown. Going on a vacation alone or with your loved ones is a great way to decompress and relax.
Immersing yourself in new scenery and engaging with new cultures can quickly get us back to feeling like ourselves again. Road trips have become an increasingly popular way to travel as we’re able to experience a change of scenery while still being in the safety of our cars.
Spending the money we accumulated over the time spent indoors doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Please take a closer look at where you’re deciding to spend your money and make sure it serves a purpose for you. Don’t spend to keep up with the trends or just because you want to get back to normal again. Allow yourself to spend your money on products and services that help us get back to feeling good.