Shopping at the department store

There is a wide network of department stores and specialized shops in every city. Customers can buy consumer goods either for cash or on credit. People need many things for their everyday life. Some of these things serve them for a long time (they are called durable), others are intended for a short period (they are called non-durable). The former are expensive, while the latter are much cheaper.

Department stores are often worth a look. As a rule a department store is a big shop, many-storied with different departments. There you can find various departments: haberdashery, hosiery, leatherwear, footwear, knitwear, underwear, ready-made clothes, furs and hats, textile, perfumery, video and electronics. You can also buy toys, luxury goods, china and glass, sports goods (sportswear, sport equipment), musical instruments, tape-recorders, TV sets and cameras there.

The goods to be for sale at these sections are in great demand with the customers that is why there are always crowds of people there. You can buy everything you like there. There are also escalators in big stores which take customers to different floors. It will take you much time to go through all the departments. A good assistant can help you a lot. She or he will show you the goods and advise a thing that suits you.

The ready-made clothes department offers articles of home and foreign production. Clothes in different styles, colours and sizes are for sale here. At this department women can buy dresses, pinafore dresses, skirts, blouses. The shop-assistant is always ready to serve the customer politely and will help everybody to choose the thing which will fit the person well. For men the ready-made clothes department offers suits, shirts, ties, trousers, jeans, parkas; coats. If you like something that you intend to buy, you may try it on in the fitting-room. In the knitwear section the following articles of clothes are for sale: sweaters, short-sleeved and long-sleeved pullovers, woolen jackets, cardigans, two-piece suits.

If you visit a haberdashery department, you will be surprised by a great choice of hairbrushes and combs, but­tons, ribbons, lace, tape, thread, needles, pins, handkerchiefs, zippers. Sheets, pillowcases, blankets, covers, cloths, napkins you can buy at “Linen”. To buy socks, pantyhose, stockings, knee-high stockings, stretch socks and tube socks you go to the hosiery department.

The perfumery department is very popular both with women and men. There they buy things either for their personal use or for presents. You can find on the counter various kinds of perfume. Each woman can buy there a suitable lipstick, face cream, face powder, make-up, nail polish, mascara, rouge, eye shadows. The price for some goods is quite reasonable, for others – rather high.

At the department store there is a department where you can buy all kinds of kitchen utensils and electric appliances. You may buy pots, frying pans, whistling kettles, teapots, coffee-pots, cake pans, crockery, tea-sets, spoons, forks, knives, plates, cups, saucers, bowls, and glasses. Here you can buy refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, washing machines, dish washers, irons, toasters, mincers, blenders, juicers, coffee-grinders, coffee-makers, deep-fryers and other devices that can be useful in household. In a hardware shop you may buy spades, nails, hammers, bench axes, screws, screwdrivers, gardening-tools, watering-cans, buckets, brooms, mops, bulbs.

Remember that the department store runs a special service: a customer can have the purchase wrapped up and nicely packed for a low price.