How We Shop Now

In the U.S. women like to browse the aisles, while men prefer to shop with a purpose. In India you can buy Burmese rubies on the streets of Jaipur. In Japan young girls buy entire outfits at Tokyo fashion shows with the flick of their cell phones. Shopping will always be a social interaction, but as Internet commerce grows exponentially, it's increasingly a technological one too. Here is TIME's global guide to the 21st century consumer