There’s no denying that the internet completely changed the music industry and it’s completely changing the way we shop for clothing, too.

Are you one of the internet shoppers fueling the fire?

Do you go “window-shopping” at your local boutiques, spend hours trying on piles of clothes, then hurry home to your trusty computer to order those same items online where you use discount codes, accumulate shopping points, and avoid paying sales tax?

Well, if the trend in Australia catches on, those days of shopping behavior will be coming to an end.

It seems boutiques there have caught on to the number of sales they’re losing to internet window-shoppers who frequent their dressing rooms but walk out without purchasing anything. And to discourage the behavior, they’re instituting “fitting fees” and “change room” fees.

That’s right, spend an hour with a custom ski-boot fitter at InSki and it’ll cost you $50 which will be cheerfully refunded by voucher when you check out with a pair of boots at the store.

Shop at some other popular boutiques and you’ll pay a “change room” fee to use the changing room which will, again, be cheerfully refunded at the register when you check out with actual purchases.

It’s all designed to discourage internet window shoppers who will ultimately use the brick-and-mortar store as nothing more than a tool to make online purchases from discount retailers.

As a shopper, what do you think of these policies? Is it fair for stores to charge these fees so they can survive against their online competition? Or is it utterly ridiculous?  Please weigh in with your comments below.

Fortunately, this new practice won’t apply to your favorite local vintage sellers. After all, when you walk into a vintage store, there are no online alternatives! The items are all one-of-a-kind.

So while you can comparison shop on vintage websites and perhaps find something similar, there’s no chance that you’d find the same exact item in the same exact size and same exact condition. And vice versa.

So, for instance, if you fall in love with today’s VPOD online, you’ll just have to take a chance and order, knowing your local vintage shop won’t have the same dress in stock and being reassured by the site’s generous seven day return period for refund or exchange.

Of course, once you hold this little lovely in your hands it might be hard to pry it away even if it doesn’t quite fit! This early 1950s party dress by Laura Phillips features a full skirt created with layers of muslin, acetate satin and tulle and a design that sparkles with oodles of iridescent sequins.

It’s a chic cyberspace find for a vintage fashionista!

Available at Secret Siren.

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