Model and bona fide fashionista Alexa Chung has done her fair share of shopping.
The 36-year-old says she prefers the "charm" of the high street to online purchases, even during the busy festive period, and she’s championing shopping on the high street this Christmas in Regent Street’s spoof campaign #HeyAlexa.
Christmas shopping can be stressful though, so we caught up with her for advice on making it fun, successful and hassle-free.
1. Go solo
"I like going by shopping myself. I’m a lone-shark shopper. I think it’s because when I used to model, I’d do loads of castings and always have hours to kill in-between castings. Regent Street and the West End [in London] was where I’d come to while away the hours, and sometimes I wouldn’t even buy anything."
2. Plan your route
"When I hit the high street, I plan my route in advance as it’s important to pace yourself. I like to plan breaks in-between to break up the day with refreshments, like a nice coffee, so you make more of a day of it."
3. Embrace the buzz
"You just have to embrace the idea that shopping IRL is going to be a more energetic experience – but when it’s bustling, I think that’s what makes shopping on the high street more fun.
"I do understand that it’s tempting to go online to shop, but often it’s when I do that I buy blunders because I get seduced and fall down a virtual wormhole."
"For me, there’s something charming about physically shopping [on the high-street] and it’s got something to do with happenstance and stumbling across things you weren’t expecting to find. You can go in for socks and walk away with a really nice monogrammed handbag."
4. Treat yourself too
"I’m a very selfish shopper – do I have to buy things for other people?! I like to Christmas shop with ‘a one for you, one for me’ mindset. So, what I do is buy myself a gift and then I buy someone else a gift. When you go shopping, you often find things you like too and want to keep for yourself. This especially happens when I shop for my sister because we have very similar tastes."
5. Buy people things they wouldn’t buy themselves
"Everyone has someone in their life who says, ‘Oh don’t worry about me, just get me socks or something.’ Well, this year I think we should push those people out of their comfort zone and maybe investigate a different gift. My idea for my father is a cashmere jumper. A way to jazz up something that is more of a generic essential is to embroider it with his initials so it becomes more personal."
Alexa Chung will host a live Q&A at 3pm on Thursday, December 5 on Regent Street’s Instagram, @RegentStreetW1, #HeyAlexa.
