Disappreciation of quality in our modern world
There has very likely always been cycles where this trend appears but I'm noticing it far more than ever. Perhaps it's due to the economic toilet we're swirling in or maybe it's just the fact that people simply want more stuff. I've been in retail for about 12 years now and I've seen people turn away a legitimately better product in favor of the cheaper, disposable alternative. The trend is unfortunately growing. There are several contributing factors to discuss here. Economy (as mentioned), marketing and the effect of planned obsolescence.
Let's look at the economy and it's effect on us. As we are assaulted by the media on a daily basis about how bad things are, our natural reaction is to worry. The media is good at that, that's why they will always tell us that 10 people died rather than tell us 10 people were born. It's what they are good at and that is a whole other subject. When all we here are buzz words like "job loss", "unemployment" or my favorite, "recession", we all start to subconsciously change how we see money and products. Things are bad but when someone is still making seven figures, things maybe aren't really all that bad but the mentality becomes "how cheap can I get that" instead of "How good can that be". In my niche within the bicycle industry, it was always the latter. Now, we are losing sales to massive online retailers who can undercut us by a large margin. We are still the expert from whom people seek advice but the value of that knowledge has become drastically undervalued. I have to live pretty thrifty too but I still support those who provide me with the best experience. That is what's good for the economy. Save a buck now and fuck the people who built your community?
Marketing is the other problem. Just like the media, we are saturated non-stop with marketing and advertising that tells us that the only thing we should ever think about is the low, low, lowest price guaranteed! Products are cheaper than ever and we're led to believe this is progress. That depends on how you define progress. Remember when toys were made here and they didn't poison children? The majority of advertising today focuses purely on price instead of quality of product or service. Tell someone that a product is the best there is no matter what and chances are they will be turned off by that. It's true, I see it every day. As soon as someone hears that they cringe and assume that they SHOULD NOT pay what ever it might cost. Why? Because that's what we've been taught to do by decades of marketing and advertising.
Planned obsolescence is the ugly one in my opinion. The idea here is to create a product with a purposely finite lifespan with the intention of creating a cycle of demand. If you make a product that lasts, no one needs another one right? Let's make one that will last two years and then we get repeat sales every two years. There is certainly obvious logic to that as disgusting as it is. This has created a pattern of manufacturing that produces goods that are just plain garbage. Let's remember that all this stuff goes into landfills too. Cell phones are the best example of an industry that is just laughing all the way to the bank while they herd us along to the next gizmo again and again. (I have an Iphone). Planned obsolescence ruins quality.
What now? I live in the real world too as hard as that may be to believe given what shows up here. I do appreciate quality even though I can't always afford it. Take a second and ask yourself, Who made this? Was it some one who cares about what they made? Was it made by someone who is being exploited? This is important stuff. Buy less but buy better. Buy from independent business' because they hold this country and others up. In a word, Think.
I sell handmade bicycles. They are made by other cyclists who also ride bicycles. They care about what they make, They care about their environment, they care about me and they honestly do care about you. I sell them because I know this and I sleep well at night knowing what I sell is truly the best thing someone can buy. I have never had to lie to someone to make a sale in my life and I never will because I sell quality and everyone else should too. I would like to live in a world where the trend is to make things the best way, not the cheapest way.
Let's try and stop the disappreciation of Quality.
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