Mystery phone use

Image via Wikipedia

Needed to make a Costco stop on the way home from work today, and during that I was really struck by something I'd just vaguely been noticing in previous Costco visits. Namely, the number of people in the store who were using their cell phones and actively talking to someone.

These were not people just walking around between putting items in their carts. They were stopped, faced towards an item or items and using the phone.

What can be causing that many people to be making calls while shopping in Costco? Some possibilities that occur:

• Needing to clarify exactly what item or items need to be bought.
• Finding an item that was supposed to be bought is not there and checking if something else that is there is acceptable.
• Checking if the other person is also interested in an item that was not planned to be bought but caught the attention of the person who was in the store.

Any other possibilties occur to you?