Women are sold on shopping

LET a woman and her friend loose in the shops and you can say good buy to them.

They are the perfect combination for a successful spree, and will make the most of the occasion, a survey reveals.

The two will spend the longest time - three hours 18 minutes - than any other mix of shopping partners and spend the most money, an average £55.

And there's bad news for every fed-up fellow out with a woman determined to shop till she drops.

While she scoops up armfuls of clothes, he'll often sit scowling outside the changing rooms, stand twitchily near the till, or gaze stonily at the ceiling - hoping to show her how bored he is with it all.

He may even go along grumbling to the special waiting areas - complete with televisions - that some shops now offer.

But no matter how obviously a man shows his aversion to his partner's retail therapy session, it won't do much good.

Letting her know he is bored and frustrated will save some time, but it won't save much money. Because it seems that when the female of the species goes shopping, she is governed by complex psychological factors that effectively put paid to such male ploys.

'If women are rushed by their partner, they won't necessarily spend any less,' said Holly McQuie, spokesman for the Morgan Stanley Credit Card, which carried out a survey of 1,000 women.

'They end up making impulse buys because they can't think things through properly. Two girls together may debate the merits of two different skirts, while a man would probably not want to agonise over the details.'

With a male partner, a woman will take two hours 33 minutes, but still spend £54. Accompanied by her mother, she will take three hours 18 minutes and spend £42.

Going shopping alone, she will be away for only two hours and 15 minutes and spend that same £42.

'When two girls go shopping together, you have the dynamic right,' explained psychologist Dr Tamsin Addison, head of research at marketing experts RSM. It's about mutual support and encouragement. It's useful to have not only the reassurance that the colour suits, but to say, "Yes, it does the right thing for you."

'There's always concern that a bloke may be saying, "Yes, I like that," because he is bored and wants to go home, or he doesn't want you to have the shorter skirt with high heels - or he thinks it is going to make you look very good, but is not appropriate for the particular circumstance.

'Girls and their mothers are good shopping partners because it is a time for bonding and a social outing.'

However, the analysis is unlikely to make much difference to supershoppers such as Alex Curran, girlfriend of soccer star Steven Gerrard, who has a reported monthly allowance of £100,000.

Morgan Stanley marketing director Patrick Muir said: 'It is interesting to see how the choice of shopping companion can change the dynamics.'