I would argue that, especially for consumer goods, price is king. Appliances last for shorter periods than they used to and can no longer be meaningfully repai

I would argue that, especially for consumer goods, price is king. Appliances last for shorter periods than they used to and can no longer be meaningfully repaired. But they are cheap, so nobody cares. I read a book about Walmart and how one of their suppliers realized that the sweet spot for lawn mowers was an annual purchase. Make it out of plastic and sure, it won't start the next year, but it is an $70 lawnmower, so that didn't matter to customers. Same with everything from shirts to food. Nobody thinks it is better quality. But it is cheaper.