In the beginning it was Tiger. The kingdom of those objects mostly useless but so colorful and low-cost objects, therefore playfully seductive, to make almost impossible to go out without having bought at least one inexperza: a peeer-color in the shape of a temperature? Absolutely not necessary, yet irresistible. Then, one afternoon in Bologna, a friend showed me Pepco With the euphoria of those who have just discovered a precious shortcut. And from that unusual enthusiasm I understood that a new portal had opened towards impulsive shopping: that of the so-called “discount non-Food”, the discount stores that sell home products at low prices-so further and sensationally lower-to be depopulated also in Italy. A few months later, when I entered from Action And I saw a package of noodles at 34 cents, I had the certainty: in times of inflation, new places were born where to vent our consumer reflections. Or rather: new non-plays to pretend, even for a moment, an unusual purchasing power, as caught by a state of intoxication. In short, a new drug, in short,. If by “drug” we mean that passing excitement, that sudden desire for something that, after all, we do not really need and the desire to repeat the experience.

One afternoon among the Dante Action groups

In Piazza Malatesta, in Rome, on a Saturday afternoon in mid -June there is no living soul. But it is enough to go down a plane to find yourself in the midst of the Dante Action groups: a windowless department store – when the contact with outdoor is zeroed, there is no possibility of distracting itself from the purchase – where the air becomes warmer, because there are many to breathe. Dozens of people move birds of prey between the lanes. “Mammaaaaaa”, shouts the child who sees the noodles at 34 cents. A group of unknown women in front of the lipsticks sold incredibly at 89 cents. From the shelf, an owl with two solar lamps in your eyes looks at you, she wants you, calls you: basically it costs just 1.39 euros, why not have it on the balcony? “How cute,” she says. “Another useless thing”, he replies (it must be recognized: it is often a “he” who redeem the impulsive purchase. Not surprisingly, the clientele of these discount stores is mostly female, they say some numbers, confirming that sexist but unfortunately obviously current stereotype, which still binds women to the house). I enchant, unebbed, to want yet another candle for the salon at 0.89 cents: my Pinterest algorithm would be proud. Of course, it is true: here the low -cost home products – detergents, pots, towels – are a manna from heaven for families. Yet to make this place hypnotic, it is not so much the usefulness of the products, but the playful experience of purchasing that induces, complicit colored objects that once ended straight to take dust in the belief of the grandmother, but to which we still cannot resist today. In short, we are in a real adult playground.

A new business in full rise (also in Italy)

Supervis, German magazine specialized in advertising, writes in an article entitled Action, Tedi and Co: the discount stores are on the rise: “Lidl and Aldi have shaped the food retail market in Europe for decades, as well as the incredible success of Zara and H&M in the Fast Fashion sector. After food and fashion, another segment is now undergoing the impact of discount stores. A new generation of non -food chains is gaining land”. In Italy, Action, Dutch chain, it has 160 points of sale today: 60 those already opened in 2025, indicating an ascent that has been total since 2023. Pepco, Polish, has been at 200 stores since 2020. Tedi, German, he has 130 from 2018. The customers seem mostly composed of families with medium or medium-low income, but also to young and single: on the one hand those who have a real need for savings, on the other who seeks the Dope of a design candle seen on Instagram (that is, its low cost version). Then, of course, each brand has its own specificities: Pepco, for example, has an important segment linked to children’s clothing.

One product pulls the other, like cherries. What is the “Purchase of impulse”

The real strong point, as it was said, is of course the price. Being able to afford a whim without guilt is Nirvana, these days. “We buy in large volumes to be able to guarantee better prices,” explained Philippe Levisse, general manager of Action Italy. And this is precisely this, however, that makes the purchasing experience unique, vaguely compulsive, as we anticipated before. For the customer, one purchase pulls the other, like cherries: the perception of the risk is zeroed, because, albeit wrong, 90 cents mistakes. And so, in the cart, the umpteenth frame frame ends, even if you have no more photos at home to frame. Thus a form of “binge shopping” is triggered, that is, compulsive shopping. Or rather, a classic “impulse purchase”, to use technical terms: something dictated by emotion and not by a rational shopping list. Driven by the belief that this is the right place to “make a deal”, you end up in the paradox: you don’t look for something you really need, but you hope that something, suddenly, serves you. And you spend, spend.

On Tiktok the “haul” multiply, or the videos of the “booty”, shown in favor of camera: ordinary people or creators empty enormous envelopes full of dozens of objects in front of the smartphone, infecting others. It is the new marketing, which in some specific cases – like this – can replace traditional advertising. Action, Tedi and Pepco have not launched commercials on TV: they live (very well) of this word of mouth. A mechanism that works for all low cost brands: Normal for perfumeries, primark for clothing, and of course for them too. Another great protagonist in times of capitalism for accumulation: the one that makes us fill the Shein’s cart in a bulimic way, always looking – as we are – of a new dopamine discharge, albeit momentary (something that here, in a “physical” shop, is even more immediate). On Facebook you joke about your dependence. Someone shows receipts more than weekly.

Everything, around, suggests that you are making a deal. While risk of stumbling on a box resting on the ground, I am reminded of a King of Massimiliano Dona, president of the National Consumer Union, who makes an excellent popularization work on social networks. In that video he explained that the confusion generated by certain baskets placed in the midst of the corridors of supermarkets leads us to think that those products cost little and, therefore, that we are making a deal. Especially in action, this effect is total. The vibes They are those of the market: the essential furniture, the products scattered everywhere, even on the ground; The shelves (low) are accessible, without glass or other mental barriers. You can literally get your hands on a 12 euro cotton candy machine and convince you that you need, forgetting that you will use it four times in life. Even prices are staggered: 0.87 cent, 0.44 … never a round figure.

Tiktok, Facebook and who pays (even) the “personal shoppers”

It is striking that Action, Tedi and Pepco have no online store, in full countertrend compared to the logic of e-commerce. To buy, you have to go to the shop (and therefore fall into the cherry trap mentioned above). Provided you have a nearby shop. In the meantime, in the meantime, a parallel (and unauthorized) business of “personal shopper” has even developed: people who, having a store near the house, buy for those who live in non -served countries. The bargaining takes place online, particularly in the Facebook groups born spontaneously to confront the quality of the products. Needless to say, those who spend the shopping for you puts on a ridge on it.

But the account arrives at the cashier

Yes, the “booty”. Arriving at the house, the inevitable epiphany: adding everything up, you find yourself spent almost as much as in a traditional shop. Instead of buying one product, however, you take home an improbable mix of perfumed candles, gardening gadgets – passion you didn’t know you had – and a pink colander. “Thanks and see you,” says the cashier. But next to someone says: “Next week you have to come with me to the action of Ariccia, there you find even more stuff”. And the carousel continues. Moreover, it is a mechanism studied: the assortment is renewed every week. And you will come back – even if you don’t need anything in the end – just to inoculate your dose of novelty.