Beauty Dictionary: Showrooming

Our series on industry lingo lets you expand your beauty vocabulary.

Showrooming

[shoh - room 'ing]

1. The act of visiting a physical store and then buying the product for less online. 

This new, controversial term is growing among the beauty market. When customers see products at a retail outlet, test it on the spot, then go home to order it online for a lot less than the retail price, the outlet loses money. Online sites like Amazon make it hard for these brick and mortar shops to survive. Now, with smart phones, taking a quick picture or making a note of something you see while out shopping makes it easy to "go showrooming." Although showrooming is not illegal, it is frowned upon in the retail world. It does, however, make saving money easier for the consumer.