The opposite of the title use to be the slogan of the famous jeans and clothing maker Levi Strauss. However, the company reported 4 million dollar losses last week. Few weeks earlier, Swedish retailer H&M announced a rise in profits for the second quarter. H&M’s countryman, IKEA, is not doing that bad either, specially if considering the crisis and all. And what is it that these three have in common? Well, let’s just say that if Levi’s is and was more about quality, H&M’s and IKEA’s charm has traditionally been somewhere else.
Even though it may seem so, this is not (all) about an envious Finn whining about the success of his neighbours. In fact, an opposite example can be found from Sweden as well. Take Saab for example: it at least used to make cars that, on my opinion, had a performance-safety-quality-whatever relation superior to any other car maker. However, they were and still are in danger of becoming extinct. The point is that quality does not sell, it is the very opposite that does.
One might argue that it is all about price. That definately has something to do with it, specially in the time of crisis, but overall I think it is more about the need to consume and all the things that come with it. Consuming is not just consuming, it is so much more. It is time for oneself, to feel good about oneself, a moment of personal therapy, an opportunity to change completely, a chance to be part or even one with the world of brands, products, flashy lights and shiny stores. For many consuming is what living is all about, that is, consuming is in some cases equivalent to living.
Naturally, the horrible thing is when there is no need to buy anything. It is not that it would stop people buying, but shopping is nicer when there is a real reason for it. If clothes, furniture etc. last forever, that reason becomes absent for a very long time. Eventually buying many cheaper things is likely to become more expensive than buying one of quality, but with one it is always the same, and people end up lacking the thing that they like the most and even defines who they are.
Thus, quality has become an enemy. It denies people their purpose of life. It does not allow them their little moments of pleasure, it takes away their possibility to renew themselves and leaves them isolated and lonely. Brands and products that help consume by giving more opportunities to consume are therefore much needed. That is also the reason why these brands and their owners succeed. Furthermore, they do so with low cost. Quality often means not only higher prices but also higher production costs. With less quality it is totally the opposite. Aside from maybe the environment, almost everybody, meaning the companies and the consumers, wins, at least for the moment.
I suppose consuming for the sake of consuming started with the cheaper things, such as clothes and small household items etc. Therefore, the interesting thing is how far will it go? The crisis might have cooled things down a little bit, but there is no reason why things would not continue going to the same direction afterwards. Maybe cars which dont last longer than few years are going to be next big thing. Then again, why stop there, when there are so many other things that one can consume and brighten up the day?
