I don’t remember exactly when the change occurred, but I do recall realizing at some point that an important line had been crossed, one where paying the lowest price became a kind of status symbol.
As a child, I remember feeling somewhat embarrassed when a fried proudly invited me to see his new color television — a Curtis-Mathes — and listening to him casually brag about it being the best brand and more expensive than any other. While it didn’t look all that much different than our much less expensive Zenith, I remember thinking that it must be nice to be able to afford the very best.
Of course there are some today who are willing to pay for quality, but I find that this affords the buyer little status. In fact just the opposite. Continue reading