I’ve officially concluded I’m at a loss for how to determine if a product is worth it’s cost anymore.

  • Brand loyalty with local retailers is non-existent anymore, big box stores etc all seem to be switching manufacturers and I can’t buy the same products that were offered before

  • Online reviews are no longer reliable. On site, it’s paid reviews by “special” users who are given perks to review. Off site it’s paid affiliation links, all of which scream “conflict of interest” to an actual honest review.

  • Ratings are no longer functional. I can view 20+ products and all 1 star reviews or even 5 star reviews just look like copy/paste from competitors or their own employees. Every product has the same reviews now.

  • Quality Control is gone. It’s all being mass produced with no oversight, it’s a hit or miss type of ordering now. What’s perfect for one person, another person will get defective products repeatedly (even auto parts, store brand tools do the same thing)

  • Return windows are a joke, or you pay extra so you can return something defective after 30 days. This doesn’t always mean the product is less defective, but if it does then they’ve just hidden their full product cost in extra “charges”.

  • Less often, companies quality tank when switching manufacturers or lowering production costs. I have no clue how to officially keep up with this unless it’s random friends/co-workers or a forum post I stumble onto.

So, besides paying 10x-20x more for a high priced company to hold my hand and apologize for every mistake they make (and they sometimes still ship defective products), what are some effective methods you’ve used to purchase a decent product that will perform for the entirety of it’s intended lifetime?

  • @rdyoung
    5•7 months ago

    You need to find the right stores/brands to support.

    2 examples that my family stand behind and preaches from the mountain tops.

    Costco. They as a retailer stand behind all of their products and take virtually everything back with little to zero questions. Pharmacy and optical is worth the price of admission alone. Make sure you have storage for some of the stuff you end up buying but if you are smart about it, it’s worth the run every 4-6+ weeks.

    Duluth. Purveyor of fine clothing and unlike carhartt, Duluths stuff actually stands up to being used and abused. If you watch for deals and clearance you can get some damn good clothes at a decent price. Bonus for the female shaped beings out there, Duluth is the only one we have found that has womens clothing with actual pockets, including cargos.