Brands, love them or hate them, one thing's for sure, we all have them. Some of us go crazy over brands, even to the extreme of starting online wars or cults. The iPhone vs Android debate is an example of one of those situations that are extreme in nature for some people.
Those are usually the people that like to show off their brands to others, proudly wearing and pulling around their flashy logos. And then there are people who use brands more as an indicator of quality or trust in a product. I usually fall into that last group, I think. Most of my clothes come from budget stores for example, and my tech stuff is all based on reviews and usability balanced with low prices. That means I go for things of trustable brands that don't hurt my wallet too much.
The brand craze is a very weird thing, which I've recently seen much more up close ever since I moved to the "developed" world. To see people buy shirts that are 50 times the price of the shirts I wear, all for that logo of a glorified white check mark on it, is absolutely absurd to me. And yet it happens.
It's sometimes also the people that can afford it the least that purchase the priciest of brands. This is also absurd to me. I read somewhere that those who are not financially well off try to create the feeling and image of being financially stable with brands and big flashy things. While those who actually know that they are financially stable feel no need to do so. That theory makes sense if you think about it.
I think whether you chase after brands or not is also a matter of upbringing and education. The more logical your thought process becomes, the less logical some actions seem. This means that we need to think about our actions before we take them, instead of blindly following a general pattern everyone else is following. Don't be a sheep, in short.
There's something to say about the psychology of it all. Brands know what they are doing. It's no surprise that millions of dollars, or whatever other currency, are pumped into marketing and advertising. Subliminally we are all affected by messages shoved into our faces by big companies. And if your logical thinking is lacking, it might get you.
Whether it gets to you or not, what really matters is that you are happy with your financial decisions. Some might find pleasure in life through flashy things and brands, while others find it to be an ends to a mean. Either way, they're fine with it.
That being said, there's no real message to what I'm writing, unless you see one. But nonetheless, these were some of my thoughts on the matter.
What about you? How crazy are you about brands? And what are some other thoughts on the topic?