Prologue: “The World, Stuffed into a Little Black Dress”
We might as well start, just to work the kinks out, by going dress shopping with my wife. Now, if you’re a man reading this, it’s a safe bet that you’re not thrilled about the prospect of going dress shopping with my wife, much less with your own wife, or going shopping for much of anything save for handheld electronics or a massive, high-definition video monitor. More from the Prologue

From Chapter 3: “How We Got Here”
Time now to take a step back, way back, if only to gain our bearings. To appreciate how the Sell Side brought us to where we are today and where it might be taking us –social retailing? a wonder drug to cure compulsive shopping? – it helps to look into a time-tested mirror, that is, the rearview mirror. There’s no need for an exhaustive history of how the modern Buy came to be, but a detour now and then will help us keep things in focus. More from Chapter 3

From Chapter 8: “You”
We’ve reached a turning point in Sell Side history. We have become selling assets. When did it begin? Pretty much around the dawn of the new century, when a different species of Sell Side snoop started sidling up to us in bars, chatting us up at our kids’ playground, striking up conversations as we sat there minding our own business at Starbucks. Chance encounters? Maybe, maybe not. More from Chapter 8

From Chapter 16: “Shoptimism”
I check the calendar. Sixty-two days between now and yet another Black Friday, 65 to Cyber Monday, 96 shopping days till Christmas. We’re heading into what Sell Siders refer to as the “Hard Eight”, the eight most critical weeks of the year — make-or-break time. This morning Santa, undaunted by the deepening recession, sent an advance team to scope out the Magnificent Mile, where his workers will wrap strands of white lights around the trees that line the avenue. More from Chapter 16