Buying cheap doesn't always mean cheap. Some of us learn this along the line of our buying. At least I learned this a long time ago when I bought my first blender.
You walked up to two similar products, one is 10$ and the other is 12$, this might trigger you to go for the lesser price, after all, they all seem to perform the same functions. But will the cheapest item cost you 10$ on the long run?
Actually, before that my first blender was my first Android phone that ended up frustrating my life just because I failed to save more money and go for a more quality Android phone. There are other stuff I bought that I thought were cheap but in the long run, I ended up spending more as most of the products with lesser prices don't last as compared to some slightly expensive ones.
I still remember walking to the blender vendor shop some years back and she showed me her varieties of blenders according to quality and prices.
On hearing the different prices of the different brands she had, I settled for the cheapest. A big mistake I regretted just two weeks later.
I could have waited to save more money so that I could afford a more quality one but ended up settling for the cheapest, thinking that at least it will serve me for a while. But after just two weeks it stopped working and when I tried to return it I was told by the seller that the brand does not have any form of warranty. I guess the cheap price of the blender doesn't even let me remember to ask if it has a warranty before buying.
I had to go back and start saving for a more expensive and a quality brand. This actually cost me more, I could have spent less if only I put quality and durability into consideration before buying the first blender.
Ever since that experience, I vowed never to buy things just because they are cheaper. Yes, I still consider prices but that comes after considering the product quality and durability.
This saves me money in the long run, as some cheap products make me spend more and still be frustrated in the end.
Expensive products/brands don't mean they are the only good product
Just because the product is the most expensive doesn't mean they are the only best quality. Sometimes such brands have come a long way with their name, and people trust them easily so their price doesn't matter to their loyal customers. This can make their products more expensive compared to a new brand and sometimes the new brand's product might be as good as those old brands.
I learned that new brands will most of the time beat down their prices to gain access to the market and gain people's trust. So, I'm always on the lookout for such brands that lower their product price and still offer quality and durable products.
What I usually do is look for quality products with a certain assurance of durability and a fair price. This way I save more money in the future than just buying cheap products without putting the quality into consideration.
When I bought my current phone for $202 over a year ago, I took my time to research exactly the quality and specifications that I need. Then plan and save towards the cost. On the day I bought it, I discovered that the market price was about $10 above what I thought I would meet in the market and I could easily go for another product with lower specifications. But I chose not to as the phone has exactly everything that I need, from a great camera to long lasting battery and storage space. So, somehow I just get to source for the money and buy it and today it happens to be one of the best buying decisions I have made.
Everything is still serving me greatly. And for someone that loves taking photos a lot, if I had gone for a cheaper phone with smaller storage space by now I would have started thinking of buying another phone. That will have been an extra cost most especially in this high rate of inflation.
Being a minimalist has taught me how to put quality and durability of products into consideration and it has been proving to save me cost.
This is my entry into #KISS-BLOGGING-IDEA WEEK#69 in the minimalist community. And you are welcome to join us through this Link
All pictures used in this publication belong to me.
