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Interesting - didn‘t notice that. I‘m only buying quality stuff and stick to it as long a possible. Most of my cloth are years old. I’m buying a new iPhone if
by st-keller 3y ago
Interesting - didn‘t notice that.
I‘m only buying quality stuff and stick to it as long a possible. Most of my cloth are years old. I’m buying a new iPhone if the one i have doesn’t get any updates anymore, and furniture has to outlive me.
I always thought this is reasonable and that everyone would do it that way: Always having high quality stuff, saving money instead of wasting it by continuously buying cheap things!
Seem‘s like i’m really out of touch with the world.
- dartos 3y agoMost people don’t have the option to buy quality goods in the first place, so they end up in the money sink trap. Constantly buying replacements for cheaply produced goods. It only takes buying the same thing 2 or 3 times before it’s more expensive than the quality options anyway.
- Clubber 3y agoI think that's true. I also think that many people don't know the difference. I also think people have bought the expensive stuff and it end's up being just as cheap, but had fancy marketing. I also think executives chasing a bonus will take a quality brand and cheapen it for higher profits. An example, I bought a DeWalt electric pole trimmer. It was expensive, but I bought it because I wanted something that lasted. It broke after a couple of weeks and sits collecting dust. DeWalt used to be known for top quality stuff that contractors use. The brand is now diluted and probably crap. It really makes me hesitant to buy much anything I don't absolutely need.
- otikik 3y agoNo, you are doing the rich man thing; the rich man can afford to buy a $20 pair of boots which lasts 5 years. The poor man can only afford the low-quality $6 pair which lasts a year.
- culopatin 3y agoI know this doesn’t change your point but adding a 0 would make it match reality a bit more.
- Vecr 3y agoAnd then multiplying it by 2.
- st-keller 3y agoMaybe, but are they rich because they do it, or the other way around? Buying quality stuff is possible without being rich: Most of my friends in school had their fourth walkman before i had my first one (worked for 30+ years btw).
- searealist 3y agoShow me the boots that are 3.3x more expensive but last 5x as long. When buying new, it's very rare that buying expensive actually saves you money.
- bigbinary 3y agoThere’s definitely a point of diminishing returns, but boots from Ross can cost about $45, while a $300 pair of red wings would last a lifetime, if maintained properly. A pair of $1000 boots are definitely beyond that line and will also last a lifetime, while costing 3.3x more
- swalling 3y agoThere are several brands of boots like this. I have a pair of Red Wing boots that I purchased new in 2013 (I don’t remember the price but today they are $350). Unlike most other modern sneakers or boots, they are made so that the soles be replaced, which I have done once for $100. Other than this, the only consumable part is shoelaces. With maintenance of the leather, it is completely expected for these boots to outlive me.
- searealist 3y ago$350/3.3 is $106. Do you expect these boots to last 5x longer than $106 boots?
- CobaltFire 3y agoMine did; I'm still wearing them (I bought mine in 2016, and they haven't needed resoled yet) and the $100 boots I was wearing (US Navy authorized) would barely last a year. So for the $300 or so I paid then I got 6 years hard use out of them, and I'm still using them for stuff now that I don't wear them for work. I have other pairs of dress shoes from Red Wing that are similar; I doubt I'll EVER need to replace them. Note: the boots are style 2412, the shoes are a variety but the oldest are called MIL-1 Congress boots (Chelsea). I have a few pairs of a different style dress shoe from the heritage line as well.
- ashbee 3y agoI like the way Terry Pratchett put this in Men At Arms: The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles. But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that’d still be keeping his feet dry in ten years’ time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet. https://terrypratchett.com/explore-discworld/sam-vimes-boots-theory-of-socio-economic-unfairness/ https://terrypratchett.com/explore-discworld/sam-vimes-boots...
- otikik 3y agoOh so that’s where I remember that from. Thanks! Mr Pratchett was a gift to humanity.
- vijayr02 3y agoDO YOU NOT KNOW THAT A MAN IS NOT DEAD WHILE HIS NAME IS STILL SPOKEN? (I know this wasn't spoken by DEATH but it seemed appropriate) For a true DEATH quote: ‘DON’T THINK OF IT AS DYING,’ said Death. ‘JUST THINK OF IT AS LEAVING EARLY TO AVOID THE RUSH.’
- MiguelX413 3y agoIronically enough, the last sarcastic clause about being out of touch is true.
- mvdtnz 3y agoDo you expect people who have the means to flagellate themselves with cheap stuff to satisfy you? Or simply waste money buying the best of everything first time?
- otikik 3y agoI don’t understand this comment. Flagellation is not my thing, I’m good, thank you.
- IMRC21 3y ago> keeping a phone if the one I have doesn't get any updates anymore This is actually a nice way of knowing when to change phone
- st-keller 3y agoAnd it’s fun too: The new phone is usually way better than the old one! The only downside is, that for 2 out of 4-5 years, the quality of my fotos are not state-of-the-art.
- toasterblender 3y ago> I‘m only buying quality stuff and stick to it as long a possible. Most of my cloth are years old. > I’m buying a new iPhone if the one i have doesn’t get any updates anymore There have been many cases of Apple deploying planned obsolescence - intentionally crippling devices to get people to buy new models. So I wouldn't call Apple products that 'quality stuff'. I base decisions on quality products based on how good they function, how long they last, and how easy and straightforward they are to repair yourself. Apple checks absolutely none of those boxes.
- tru3_power 3y agoHow do you go about finding quality furniture?
- clnq 3y agoSolid wood is an easy answer. Buy used and it will be much cheaper. Restoring worn wood is easy and it's a nice weekend project.
- ssss11 3y agoWell I think this all makes sense but people don’t generally do it because 1 high quality furniture item is more expensive upfront than the first cheap item. People with no money go for the cheap one then are trapped in the cycle of replacing it every few years.
- jaredezz 3y agoI tend to follow what I call the "toolbox rule," mostly because I've used it the most with tools. If I find I need something, I'll buy a cheap version of it, even if the cheap version is noticeably lower quality (which it almost always is). Then, if I use said cheap version enough that it either breaks or is no longer useful to me anymore, I'll buy a nicer one. It helps me justify the greater expense and demonstrates the need for it. I've done this with umbrellas, camelbaks, tents, ski equipment, but mostly, as stated before, tools.
- aspyct 3y agoI think that's smart, on paper at least. What so you do about the cheap tools that turn out so bad that they cause damage? For example, you get a cheap screwdriver, it breaks while you use it, and you end up making a hole in the cabinet you were trying to fix. While the general approach sounds sane, it seems to me there are a lot of cases where going for the cheap version could cost a lot in collateral damage.
- mvdtnz 3y agoThat's not a remotely reasonable example. Cheap screwdrivers will fail to engage properly, wearing out fasteners, and they will break when being used as a lever or punch. But even the cheapest 100% pure Chinesium screwdriver is not going to break in the course of assembling a cabinet.
- aspyct 3y agoYes, that was just an example to illustrate the "what if your cheap X causes collateral damage", which is a real thing. Imagine you get a cheap drone for videography. It fails mid flight, falls and kills someone. Bad tools can have consequences. What does parent commenter do about this?
- trilbyglens 3y agoI think if your tools are causing an inferior outcome, you are likely already working at a higher level of craft expectation and wouldn't be buying cheap tools in the first place. If your tools are for a basic handyman toolbox you're likely to never need very high quality and expensive tools are a straight up waste of money.
- herbst 3y agoI do this since I can afford doing that. In the past when I needed anything I had to calculate what I could afford, now I can look at everything with a long term aspect. I also have the time to invest in extensive product research. I also spend like half on food since I buy in bulk and mostly directly from farmers. But realistically who can afford paying hundreds of dollars for a pack of meat today? Like in right now without missing the money elsewhere. I am sure the majority can't. (Maybe different on here)
- powderpig 3y agoThis is essentially the Boots Theory, coined my Terry Pratchett. The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. Take boots, for example. ... A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that'd still be keeping his feet dry in ten years' time, while a poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet. Men at Arms. p. 32.
- zingababba 3y agoI subscribe to the buy once cry once philosophy. Meaning bite the bullet and buy quality. My wife is finally coming around after we've had to replace items that she initially wanted to pinch pennies on. Obviously doesn't apply to stuff you know you will seldom use.