7 subtle shopping habits that make wealthy people instantly peg you as low class (without you realizing it) – VegOut

My friend recently accompanied her new boyfriend to Bergdorf Goodman. Within minutes, he’d photographed a $3,000 sweater’s price tag to send to his group chat. The salesperson’s smile tightened almost imperceptibly. “First time?” she asked, though it wasn’t really a question. He thought he was being funny. What he’d actually done was violate one of those invisible rules that separate insiders from outsiders.

Shopping isn’t just about acquisition—it’s a complex social performance where every gesture telegraphs belonging or its absence. Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital demonstrates how consumption habits reveal social positioning more accurately than we’d like to admit. These aren’t character flaws; they’re learned behaviors that mark us as clearly as accents betray our origins.

The wealthy navigate luxury retail with codes developed through generations of abundance. Break them, and you might as well wear a sign announcing your outsider status.

1. You visibly react to prices

Gasping at a price tag—or worse, announcing “Eight hundred dollars for a T-shirt?”—is the retail equivalent of gawking at celebrities. It instantly marks you as a tourist in this ecosystem.

Those with generational wealth treat astronomical prices with studied indifference. They’ve internalized since childhood that discussing money is vulgar. Showing surprise at costs suggests you’re doing arithmetic you can’t afford. Research on luxury brand signaling reveals that established wealth whispers while new money announces itself. The genuinely rich either know prices already or consider them irrelevant.

2. You immediately check labels

That reflexive flip to find the designer label broadcasts that you value the brand’s status more than the item itself. It’s telling the room you need external validation of worth.

Studies on status signaling show that established wealth gravitates toward “quiet luxury”—pieces recognizable only to other insiders. They evaluate construction, fabric weight, and silhouette. Checking labels is like announcing the wine’s price before tasting it—it reveals you’re more concerned with perceived value than actual quality.

3. You document your shopping experience

Posing with shopping bags, taking dressing room selfies, or photographing your purchases violates an essential rule: these spaces should feel routine, not special occasions.

Old money treats Barneys like their living room. Taking photos suggests this is noteworthy rather than Tuesday afternoon. As Veblen observed, the leisure class’s defining trait is treating luxury as mundane. Those secure in their position don’t need Instagram evidence of their shopping trips.

4. You’re too friendly with staff

Luxury retail operates on carefully calibrated social distance—cordial but never intimate. Over-friendliness, personal questions, or bonding attempts over prices mark you as uncomfortable in this space.

The wealthy maintain what Bourdieu termed professional boundaries—respectful but impersonal. They understand this transactional relationship’s parameters. Excessive warmth reads as either desperation or misunderstanding the unwritten social contract.

5. You inquire about discounts

“When’s your sale?” “Any promotions today?” “Is there a discount for multiple items?” Each reasonable question announces that price matters to you.

Shopping behavior research demonstrates clear class patterns: abundant resources lead to desire-based rather than deal-based purchases. Asking about sales suggests you’re stretching to be there. The wealthy buy at full price or not at all—sales are for aspirational shoppers, not those for whom luxury is routine.

6. You announce your purchases

“I can’t believe I just bought this!” “I shouldn’t have spent that!” These declarations reveal that this purchase carries weight—financial and emotional.

For old money, a $5,000 handbag carries the same significance as groceries. They don’t announce purchases because there’s nothing to announce. Veblen’s analysis of conspicuous consumption explains how treating purchases as events rather than routine reveals financial anxiety, regardless of actual wealth.

7. You handle everything

Touching every fabric, examining each item, trying on pieces you won’t buy—this nervous energy betrays discomfort with being served.

The upper class points, requests, considers. They don’t ransack racks like it’s a clearance event. This isn’t entitlement; it’s understanding luxury retail’s choreography. Sociological research on consumption shows excessive handling often correlates with lower purchasing power—browsing with hands compensates for inability to buy with wallets.

Final thoughts

These behaviors aren’t moral failings—they’re simply different cultural scripts. Nobody’s born knowing these codes; the wealthy learn them through lifelong immersion in abundance where money discussion is gauche.

The paradox? Many of these “tells” involve natural human responses—excitement, curiosity, warmth—that become liabilities in luxury retail’s peculiar theater. Bourdieu’s work on habitus reveals how class markers are really internalized dispositions acquired through our social positions, not conscious choices.

Perhaps true luxury isn’t affording a $3,000 sweater—it’s being so acclimated to these spaces that they lose their specialness. Or maybe it’s photographing that price tag anyway, secure enough to ignore the rules. After all, those with genuine confidence don’t monitor their signals. They’re too busy enjoying their overpriced cashmere, however they choose to shop for it.