Do people have purses any more? Why?

[Icanseeasquirrel]

My purse used to be massively important. My cash and cards. Wouldn’t leave the house without it. I can remember the purse my mum had for years. Fat brown leather thing with a snap closure. Full of old vouchers and stamps and things.
I have had many purses in my life but now just have a phone and a single card. A few notes and coins in a bag I use sometimes. I have three adult children and none of them have a wallet or purse.
I do see people at the checkout putting their stuff away in purses sometimes though. Seems so retro!
I think if I had a purse I would carry around loads of stuff I don’t need. Just musing on one of the things that’s changed in my life as a middle aged woman!
So. If you still use a purse. Why?

I still have a purse. Sometimes you need to put your card in the machine. Also might need cash. Plus some cards aren’t on my phone such as library card. I also keep some stamps in it

Me too. I don't know why I love having one. I have a beautiful leather purse I bought in Toronto with First Nation designs on it that is my favourite. I have a bit of cash, driving licence a bank card and a credit card in it. I dont really need it that often tbh as I do use my phone for my payments and loyalty cards, But I still carry it! I also have a watch that is just a watch!

I think you are American and are describing what we in the UK would call a handbag. We use purse to mean something that carries cards and cash.

OP I have a purse. It carries cards like my debit/ credit cards. Driving license, NT card, coop card, library card etc. some coins for small purchases and some emergency ten pound notes.

Ps. I keep a purse as I don’t want everything on my phone as if I lose it I am truly fucked. For example, if I travel and use my phone for my train ticket and for paying for stuff, then if I lose my phone I have lost my ticket, and my way of buying a new one, and my way of calling anyone to tell them. Manual back ups and spreading the risk is the way to go.

I always have had big long purses filled with multiple cards, vouchers, scrappy bits of paper and receipts and at some point I've migrated over to a card wallet that lives in my bag but I never ever use (I'm not sure I could even tell you what bank cards are in it) and my phone which I use for everything. I'm not sure when the switch happened but I have no intention of going back 😂

I have a beautiful leather purse that’s 10yrs old. I never leave the house without it. I have a card holder for nights out but my purse goes everywhere with me. I don’t like Apple Pay and don’t use it. I have it for emergencies but i think I’ve used it a couple of times over the years.

Yes I carry a purse in a handbag as well, the travesty!

But all in seriousness, it's a good idea to have cards on you in case google pay decides not to work as it has done to me or what if you run out of battery on your phone or it gets lost/ robbed?

I have my cards and cash in my purse.

Always, always have a back up. It's foolish not to. And I even carry a charger in my bag but it's not always practical.

Yes. Cash and cards in mine.
Also lip balm, spare contacts and a tiddly nail clipper.
Everything else in my uniqlo cross body bag.
I'm a bit of a survivalist like Dew. Always have water and a flapjack too.

I don't have an I phone so I have a purse. But I work for a charity and no-one ever has cash they generally donate with their phones

I used to love a huge purse like those ted baker ones a decade ago.
Until last November I did always have a purse but it went more medium sized 8 card slots.
I now only carry my card wallet.
It's a bit of a pain in the arse as I've often had to get £10 out of the hole in the wall for parking and I've therefore ended up with loads of coins! My local Chinese is always happy with them though.

I have one but I only ever use it on holiday as I feel more comfortable having some currency when away just in case. Otherwise, it just stays at home.

I have a purse but it’s just used for keeping all my cards in one place. but it stays home! I use Apple wallet and an app which stores all my store cards. I do have to have the NT card though, it doesn’t go digital.

Ah, I see, I am Canadian,so to me purse and handbag are interchangeable, and the part that holds the money is the wallet.

Allotment toilets? What luxury is this😂

I have to keep receipts for work. And my driving license and trolley token. But increasingly use my phone

I have two. A ‘proper’ one with all the store loyalty cards for shops I don’t go to that often (Boots and M&S are in my applepay but I defo don’t want them all in there) as well as stamps and vouchers. I only take this out if I’m going to a city where all these places are.

The smaller purse has my debit card and credit card in and is in my handbag. Even though I have these on my phone I use physical cards occasionally if buying something that might need to be returned, as it’s often my husband or daughter who take them back for me.

I manage with just my phone day to day though!

I have a wallet and a cash purse which I always carry in a bag. The wallet contains lots of cards (about 15), including DP's debit card which can't be put on my phone, and various other id/discount cards which can't be put on my phone. I have Nimbus Access cards for 4 family members, for example. My railcard is a plastic one as it means I can lend it to family members which I couldn't do if it was digital.
I don't like using my phone for cards etc as it eats into battery life/risk of battery running out and not being able to access cards on my phone. I do store a few cards on my phone wallet but only as a backup, I always use plastic cards as a first preference (and I prefer to pay using DP's card rather than my own). I carry a small cash purse with a few coins and notes in case I ever need them.

Have a big wallet
3 zips
1 for cards
1 for medication, stamps and receipts
1 for small amount of cash

I like a good wallet.
Never been a fan of a purse (or indeed the word purse).

I did have a card (mulberry) holder but it wasn’t enough so now I have a purse (mulberry) and that’s perfect

I dont have the dexterity to use a phone easily, I have lots of cards and I have physical store cards. Plus oyster and various travel cards for other countries. Plus some coins, theres also normally a few postage receipts from things Ive sent back to Amazon or the other companies which I keep until Ive got the refund, probably the odd dry cleaner ticket from time to time.

I have a tiny one, which I only really take if I’m travelling outside my home city. It includes a couple of bank cards in case I can’t use my phone for some reason, my drivers license (I need to have ID for some places I visit for work), and a couple of cards for visiting places (National Trust, etc). And a £20 note, but that’s been sat there for about two years now, without being needed!

You should make sure that you have these numbers stored elsewhere. My phone was stolen. When I got my new phone and downloaded everything from the cloud I didn’t get all the phone numbers back because they had actually been stored on the SIM card.

I have a purse with all the usual things one carries in a purse. Because I can guarantee that my purse will never run out of battery.

I have my phone and a tiny slim card holder, just in case a place doesn’t have good signal for the phone pay. And an emergency £20 in the card holder (once on a long hike we were so looking forward to the coffee at the end, but their payment system was down, and none of us had a bit of cash! Won’t happen again)

I haven't routinely carried a purse since 2020. That was the one immediate becoming long term change in my behaviour when cash use suddenly plummeted. I started using a phone case that could take cards and an emergency bank note, and I keep a coin stash in the car, but for months I only really went to the supermarket so didn't need a chunky wallet/ purse any more. I used to take emergency change running and that was annoying jingling around, so just having the phone/ cards is easier for an unplanned bus/ refreshments.

I now have a coin purse for occasional use but don't often need it.

I've never liked carying handbags, so a minimalist approach is easier for me.