Splurging, good for soul ( This article got published in The HINDU Retail plus - 4th Jan, 2008)

Why shopping is a very attractive leisure activity today.
Shopping is a leisure activity that everybody enjoys indulging in. Over the years the way we shop has changed with the advent of technology. Previously, people awaited with eager anticipation, the arrival of close aunts and uncles who lived abroad. More than the family reunion, they were excited about the new things they would receive - something they could show off and brag about to their friends and neighbours.

Now with individuals earning huge amounts of money, they are willing to throw away their incomes on valuable items that add glamour to their lifestyle. To get their hands on the best goods, they don't mind travelling the seven seas to bag them. As customers become more and more knowledgeable, the various travel agencies and air-carriers offer competitive rates to lure them. It's not only the cheap air tickets that make them explore new destinations, but the shopping festivals that allure them with great bargains and tax free shopping.

We are living in an age when time at hand is little and money is plenty. Tourists want to travel over weekends to places and shop to their hearts' delight. A shopping festival only heightens the need for a break. If you look up the meaning of 'festival' in the dictionary, it is described as an event usually staged by a community to focus on a unique aspect of their community. The shopping festival is no different as it wishes to draw prospective bees to the honey it wishes to pour forth.

Imagine getting to travel to a new place, immersing in their food and culture and shopping tax free - isn't this enticing enough to travel beyond your country and explore? We are no longer living in a world where we wait to get our hands on the last golden ticket. The shopping festival is for everybody to enjoy - for locals and foreigners alike and shopping is an activity that segregates no one.

The Dubai Shopping Festival is known around the world for its best deals on fashion and gold. Not only does it focus on retail therapy, but it also helps to revitalise the shopping experience for tourists by providing wholesome family entertainment. With Dubai and Singapore leading the bandwagon in creating shopping extravaganzas, other countries like India and China too are tapping on such resources to make dreams come true. And when we are offered such dreams that are no longer just mirages. we just follow the instructions that of Aladdin's lamp. Shopping festivals become the genies in our dream asking for what wishes they could fulfill. In my dream, I dreamt I asked for a ticket to Hollywood; what did you dream for today?