Thursday, February 2, 2012

Would you like a bag for that?

I've been thinking about this whole photo prompt thing and to be honest I don't think I'm going to be very good at it. Not that I can't manage to get a picture taken, it's more like I can't manage to get a picture taken without talking about it. So, I'm going to play along with the challenge and post a picture but more often than not I'm also going to talk about the picture. It's who I am.

Today's prompt is 'words'.
Oh dear.

Take a picture of words but then don't use words? You can see why I'm struggling can't you?

I had a fun morning with my women's club. The program was all about heart health and the speaker was excellent. So excellent in fact that I hit the gym before going home. No time like the present, right?

I stopped at the supermarket afterwards to pick up a few things, and so far this is riveting I know, but stayed tuned because I'd like your opinion about something. I take my own bags when I grocery shop, something I became accustomed to doing while living overseas. In fact, I still carry some of those same tote bags which just so happen to have words on them-


The black bag has the M & S logo on it and if you ever get to the UK definitely pop into your local Marks and Spencer. You'll thank me later. The tan bag we bought in the gift shop at Dover Castle one icy cold December day. Is it silly that shopping bags are able to send a memory washing over me in a way that makes me wanna cry? No? Good. Because they do.

Anyhoo, this reminded me of something I wanted to ask my blog peeps. As you know I spent a week with my daughter1 in the DC area. She resides on the Maryland side of DC and we did a lot of shopping while I was in town. When I shop here in NJ I get credit for bringing my own bags to the supermarket-.05/bag. Not a lot but I actually prefer to use my own bags because they make lugging the groceries in to the house much more manageable.

When I shop for clothes though, the store provides a bag. This was not the case in the Maryland suburbs. We bought a pile of things at a lovely women's shop whose name I won't mention here but it doesn't matter because its apparently an across the board policy for this particular county, and the salesclerk asked me if I wanted a bag. Seriously? At first I thought she was joking because we had a lot of items. A lot. They were a work wear type of clothing too, and not inexpensive. We're not talking t-shirts from Old Navy, although I think I'd probably want a bag for those too. Most people don't want to carry their newly purchased clothing out of a store in their arms. It seemed absurd to me and the sales clerk appeared embarrassed to ask but she had no choice. She said she'd have to charge me for a bag. Granted the charge was .05/bag and I said charge away but I found it ridiculous.

I know that most of Europe has been on the reusable bag kick for groceries for many years now in an effort to reduce waste and I don't have a problem with that. In this particular US county the monies collected go towards some sort of water quality funding program but it just felt icky to me. I'm all about reusing and reducing when we're able but I also feel like I've just paid taxes on the clothing I bought and should get a bag to carry it home. What say you?

27 comments:

  1. When I was in DC in November I got charged 5 cents for a plastic bag at a CVS. It was inside DC proper. I think it has to do with promoting recycling or something.

    I do reuse my plastic walmart bags to pick up dog poop in the backyard. So I'm recycling, right?

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  2. I'm a fan of using my own bags for grocery shopping - for the environment and for my blood pressure because they don't spill everything all over the trunk on the drive home or rip out and leave my produce on the front sidewalk. I don't think our store gives me any credit for bringing my own, but maybe I just don't pay attention.

    But no bags in an upscale clothing store? First off, when I go clothes shopping it's likely to involve more than one store. And even if they are in the same mall, who wants to carry their purchases around that way to the next place? Not like a grocery store where all your stuff is contained to a cart while you move on to the next section.

    I agree - charging for the bags - even such a small amount that you hardly notice, is just strange. Do they offer their own "branded" bags for you to purchase and ruse, like most grocery or big-box stores?

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  3. I miss M&S so very much!! And you're right...I get the grocery plastic bag fee (sort of) but who would think twice about pay .05 for a bag a clothing store.

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  4. I never heard of this. I think it's strange to have to pay for a bag. Well I guess you know for next time.

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    1. What would irritate me the most about that is that they are once again taking my money and THEY are deciding how it's going to be used. What if I don't like how it's going to be used?? Water quality? How ambiguous is that! I get tired of these do-gooders who want to decide for me where my donation should go. You did ask my opinion, right? :-)

      Actually, if I had the opportunity to shop with that great English Heritage bag, I'd probably never use anything else. lol

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  5. Here in Canada we are charged for plastic bags - 5 cents a bag so I try as often as I can to use the "environmentally friendly" bags that I have in my trunk... when I remember to grab them out before entering the store!

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  6. I guess it is one way to get people to bring bags with them when they shop but I have never heard of that before. I go to the grocery store with my bags which I keep in my trunk. I never go into a mall with a bag for my shopping.

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  7. When I was in Italy when I was 13, my brother and I had bought a souvenir that was one of a series. I wasn't even offered a bag. When we stopped at another store, the shopkeeper grabbed the item from my hands and asked me in Italian if I was stealing from her. Well, with the language barrier and all, I ended up with her handprint on my face and SHE stole the item from ME!

    My Dad's aunt, who was a fairly prominent member of the small republic in Italy my family is from, was livid. She walked with me back to the store and the shopkeeper let out an audible gasp.

    Needless to say I am all for having things I buy put in a bag, especially if I'm doing more shopping. I was targeted as an American teenager then, but who’s to say teens or foreigners can’t be targeted here and now? No bags makes shoplifting easier too.

    We make an effort to bring our reusable grocery bags with us because they're simply better than the cheap plastic bags. But we do proudly recycle more than we throw away every week. I do think that until it is a National practice, any store any place that charges for bags should post it.

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  8. Seriously? I've not heard of that here in the midwest yet. I take my own bags many times to the grocery but sometimes I forget and then when the question of paper or plastic comes up, I almost always choose plastic [gasp}. You know why? because when I get home I can carry more at one time with those handy little handles at the top of the plastic bags. I can't imagine carrying clothing from a store without a bag. They're making enough money on those clothes that they ought to be able to give you a bag. Good heavens! What are things coming to?

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  9. Like you aft living in Europe you get use to carry bags for the grocery store and I have a tote for other stores but when buying clothes I expect a bag!

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  10. I have to weigh in here because I live just steps away from the county in question and have paid the bag fee myself. I typically bring my own reusable bags for groceries but I am happy to pay the .05/bag if I happen to forget my own bags. Those plastic bags are an environmental nuisance so if I have to use some, I'll pay. BUT as far as a nice upscale clothing store goes, I think they should dispense with asking you if you want a bag (ummm yes, everytime), put your clothes in their nifty marketing vehicle called a bag and pay the .05/bag on your behalf since you just spend a wad in their store and will be marketing their wares for them for free in essence as you reuse their bags. That's just my five cents worth.

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  11. Whatever happened to bags being free...yes free....advertising for the store? If I owned a store I would want to push the brand via bags. If I owned an upscale boutique, i would cringe if a customer took their clothes out in a TARGET bag, for example. Plus yeah, i want to choose where my nickels go, thank you very much. That would embarrass me to ask a customer about a bag...or horrors..carry out clothes in their arms like a thief. Ugh!

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    1. I agree with the marketing value of store bags. But I have enough defiant teen still in me to buy in an upscale boutique and bring a bag from Dollar General, or maybe Hustler Hollywood? hehehe

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  12. I do believe in reusing bags, I have a couple that I use, but some stores like Costco, put your stuff in boxes, without a thought how I could carry a 50 box into my house.

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  13. I have never heard of that begore either! Wild!
    So when one is on a shoppping spree, lets say and one is going from store to store, how does one not look as if one is taking things?! Strange.
    And the money going toward water funding??? Shouldn't that be built into the sales tax?
    Strange, I say.

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  14. Very cute bags and yes I think you should get a bag free of charge. Never heard of getting a discount if you use your own either. Hmmmm

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  15. I agree with you. I assumed people mainly carry their own bags for groceries, but I wouldn't think for a clothing store. I think if they're having to enforce that policy at least have some recycled bags around or something, giving one an option. Like Natural Grocer's (Vitamin Cottage). It's a given that you need to bring your own bag, but they also offer their stock boxes.
    I was in a off-chain grocery store about 10 years ago that charged for their bags. I never went back, on top of that it felt really funky.

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  16. There are a few stores here that give an $.05 credit if you bring your own bag. I think it is the direction we are going and we will get used to it with time.
    I wish I had an M&S bag...I love the place. When I was in London last year I wandered around grocery stores as much as I did Harrods.

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  17. I was living in the District until the middle of last year. My understanding was that it was more of an incentive thing to keep plastic bags out of the Potomac River, ditches, high branches of trees, parks, etc. City ordinance. The stores have no control over it. They have to use the money for something, so yada, yada, yada ...

    Do I think that the ordinance is reasonable? It depends on how effective it is in reducing the litter. It's only been going on a year or too, so I'm not sure that it's been long enough to get any stats. Is the money being used as described?

    If the answer to those two questions is yes, then I think it's reasonable.

    Based on the effectiveness of the other ordinances I saw in D.C., I would expect that the answers are really no, and the sales taxes are already high enough in D.C.

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  18. It seems to me if they have people walking out the door with piles of unbagged clothing it would be pretty hard to spot shoplifters. I always take my collection of canvas bags for grocery shopping.

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  19. well, that is crazy as far as I'm concerned. We do not have any place that charges but I use bags with my husband's company logo on them for my groceries. They are just much easier, more stable and best of all FREE!!!!

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  20. Love your bags; so cute. I think it's crazy like most of your commentors. I'm just glad the charge a bag idea hasn't hit the VA side yet. :)

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  21. I just went to Marks and Spencer for the first time this week and I am in love :)
    I think it is totally ridiculous that a clothing store would ask if you wanted a bag & charged you for it. I mean do they expect you to layer up all the clothes you just purchased and wear them out over your current clothing?

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  22. Hm... I'm so used to paying for bags now at the supermarket that I don't think I'd blink an eye. TK Maxx charges for bags now in the UK.

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  23. Here in Indy it's purely optional...and since they give me free plastic bags at the BIG grocery store, I gladly take them...and re-use them to line my little trash cans at home. The minute they start charging I'm only using my own bags...which I am already doing at Aldi grocery and Farmers Market. In your situation, it does seem like they are gaining additional taxes...cheap shot. Or maybe not so cheap!

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  24. The last thing I want to do when I go to the mall is carry around a bunch of bags just in case I buy something. I vote for "ridiculous".

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  25. I lived in Engalnd for 2 years, many many yeasr ago and I still have pangs of longing. So haveing shopping bags fill you with memories is totaly fine by me.

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