Wilton Guzman

Whether men and women differ has been a controversial subject for years. Many scientists are concerned that perceived differences have led to discrimination and unfair treatment under the assumption that one gender has attributes the other does not. While there are observable differences between the brains of men and women and how they process information, researchers emphasize that the differences do not reflect a superiority of a single gender.

Furthermore, studies indicate that sex-specific characteristics fall along a broad continuum containing substantial overlap between sexes. Trying to accurately stereotype a single individual is difficult, if not impossible. In other words, if you pick one male and one female out of a crowd, they could be very similar or dissimilar depending on each person’s unique characteristics. Nevertheless, recognizing the general characteristics of each sex is important to product retailers, especially if their product is designed to appeal predominately to one sex or the other. Despite near equality in numbers, women make more than 85% of the consumer purchases in the United States, and reputedly influence over 95% of total goods and services purchased. Women as a whole are considered more sophisticated shoppers than men, taking longer to make a buying decision.

A woman’s approach to shopping is very much part of who she is; it is part of her DNA.” The way a woman shops when she is 18 years old is the same way she is going to shop when she is 43 years old. It is a lifelong mindset. This insight was unexpected, as most observers expected women’s shopping habits to change as they grew older. An article in Forbes suggests that for most men, shopping for clothes is like “doing your own brain surgery.” Another study suggests that male grocery shoppers are “like a dog looking for a lost ball in a field – they