As the year is starting to wind down, festive sales, Christmas gift guides, and glossy ads start flooding our feeds. “You deserve this.” “Treat yourself.” “Retail therapy.” We’ve all heard the term. Buying something new to make ourselves feel better is almost a cultural norm. But what if we told you that retail therapy is less about you—and more about clever marketing Retail Therapy is a marketing ploy that plays with your emotions. Retail therapy is marketed as self-care. Yet, research shows it’s often a cycle of short-term emotional relief followed by long-term dissatisfaction.

Psychologists have found that shopping can temporarily elevate your mood by triggering dopamine, a neurotransmitter linked to reward and pleasure (Knutson et al., 2007). In other words, that “add to cart” moment gives your brain a chemical hit similar to a small dose of happiness. But here’s the catch: the boost doesn’t last. Studies show that this feel-good sensation fades quickly, often replaced by regret, guilt, or financial stress (Rick, Pereira, & Burson, 2014). That’s because your brain isn’t wired to sustain happiness from material acquisition—it’s wired to adapt. Once the novelty wears off, you’re left chasing the next hit. Retailers know this. Marketing teams deliberately design shopping experiences such as lighting, music, limited-time offers, and “you might also like” recommendations—to keep you in that reward loop (Dittmar, Long, & Bond, 2007). It’s not self-care. It’s strategy. With retail therapy comes a cost: in clutter, waste, and carbon. Beyond our emotions, the cycle of buying to feel better has real-world consequences. Each new purchase adds to:

  • Waste: Australians throw away over 500,000 tonnes of clothing and textiles every year (Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, 2024).
  • Carbon emissions: Manufacturing and transporting goods contributes significantly to Australia’s per-capita carbon footprint—about 15–20 tonnes CO₂ per household annually (CSIRO, 2024).
  • Financial pressure: With rising living costs, the pursuit of short-term happiness through buying often leaves households more stressed, not less.

It’s a costly pattern—emotionally, environmentally, and financially.

A Better Kind of Boost: with Borrowing for the experience and for “real” therapy and not “retail” therapy. 

Here’s where Knocknock changes the story. Borrowing something you need—or simply want to try—can deliver a similair dopamine hit, but for a healthier reason: it’s driven by experience the item brings, not acquisition of it through ownership. Whether it’s borrowing a kayak for a weekend trip, a projector for a family movie night, or a camera to capture your Christmas memories—borrowing creates experiences that engage your emotions, not just your wallet. Psychologists call this experiential consumption, and it’s proven to bring longer-lasting happiness than buying material goods (Van Boven & Gilovich, 2003). Experiences build memories, connection, and fulfilment—the things that actually sustain our wellbeing. And when you borrow through Knocknock, you’re not just saving money. You’re also saving resources, reducing waste, and helping to cut our collective carbon footprint—part of our goal to reduce 1.3 million tonnes of CO₂ per year.  So, this Christmas, Choose shared joy over stuff, as we head into the most commercial time of the year, it’s worth pausing to ask: Do I really need to buy this? Or do I just need to feel something?  Because sometimes, the best gift isn’t a purchase—it’s a shared experience, a borrowed item, or a memory made with others.

Borrow. Experience. Feel good.
That’s real therapy.

References

  • CSIRO & Bureau of Meteorology. (2024). State of the Climate 2024.
  • Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. (2024). National Waste Report 2024.
  • Dittmar, H., Long, K., & Bond, R. (2007). When a better self is only a button click away: Associations between materialistic values, emotional and identity–related buying motives, and compulsive buying tendency online. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 26(3), 334–361.
  • Knutson, B., Rick, S., Wimmer, G. E., Prelec, D., & Loewenstein, G. (2007). Neural predictors of purchases. Neuron, 53(1), 147–156.
  • Rick, S. I., Pereira, B., & Burson, K. A. (2014). The benefits of retail therapy: Making purchase decisions reduces residual sadness. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 24(3), 373–380.
  • Van Boven, L., & Gilovich, T. (2003). To do or to have? That is the question. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(6), 1193–1202.