I recently heard an audio bite from Rob Walker, author of the upcoming book Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are
And woo boy, it will save parents a chunk of change.
So what’s the reason for this epoch-changing paradigm shift? Rob Walker points out there’s not much consensus on the street anymore. There’s so many niche consumer tribes and so much product regeneration, brand extensions, innovations and “retro-vations”, it’s impossible to keep up. Rob recalls how even a leading fashion expert admitted to a journalist he couldn’t recall the last time he saw someone who was “hopelessly out of style.”
There is another factor at play as well. That is the ever-worsening economy. Let’s face it, as basic food and fuel prices choke what little disposable income the middle class have left, conspicuous consumption will transition ungracefully from being impractical to laughably stupid. And that’s a badge no one wants to wear.
I have a “hopelessly out of style” person in my english class. She whore hot-pink spandex to school. No one ever says anything though… like it is a normal thing to do. Anyway, that isn’t the only thing she wears that makes me want to gouge my eyes out. I just don’t want to think about any more because it makes me cringe a little inside…