In Response to Chris Morin...

Although I will not be sticking around the Monadnock Region post graduation, I will definitely consider buying more local products in the area I will reside after working with Monadnock Buy Local all semester. I think what they are working towards is admirable and will soon boom with expansion.  All of the points our peers brought to MBL's attention will help them become the network they are striving to be! I hope to return to Keene someday to see them transformed and prosperous around this area!

As soon as MBL gets more structured, do you think they need a specific group of people that just work on marketing strategies? Or could they do without them?

Apple to rule the world

In an article I was reading recently, it stated that Apple's most recent quarterly profits were roughly $40 billion! Their revenues are ever increasing with or without a new gadget being released annually.  I am currently the owner of an iPhone and I can see myself never switching to another brand or type of smartphone. How is it that Apple can hook people so easily?This is the first Apple product I have ever owned, and now I have a feeling I will consistently buy a new iPhone whenever I need an upgrade. This got me thinking though, why did I get sucked into buying one? What sold it for me? How is it that a brand such as Apple can do this to people by simply having them buy one product? I would definitely invest in an iPad or a Mac just because of the efficiency of the iPhone.

In a ever changing world of technology, are other companies up to speed on this type of marketing and business strategy? If not, why haven't they caught on?

In Response to Georgianne...

Will American retailers be able to compete with European Retailers, or will they be left behind?

 I do believe that American retailers will be able to compete with European retailers but this will have to consist of a humbling and mindset change by these American industries.  Europe is very accommodating of foreign languages and appreciate tourists trying to blend in by speaking the native language, and if a tourist cannot speak the language of the country they are in, they are bound to find an employee that can speak multiple languages.  I think that is the major reason why America is lagging behind in this "luxury" race.  

America seems to be ignorant to adopting multiple languages and if we don't move forward in accommodating the melting pot of ethnicitys that are country is - then we will keep falling farther and farther behind.

Why is it that the majority of our nation is not multilingual? Does this make us ignorant?

The Overspent American

In the movie we watched last class, The Overspent American, Juliet Schor explored how our nation, over the past few decades, have been spending their time spending their money, and sometimes the money they don't have. This movie was from 2003 so a little outdated but in a recent article, two Economists at the University of Chicago School of Business offered new statistical evidence for the "trickle down spending" theory.

The authors conclude that the middle and lower income households of our nation that are exposed to higher consumption by the richer class, also appear to consume more expensive goods.  They talk about what the big problem with the very concept of 'rich goods' is.  We all think we know what rich people buy, but what they really purchase is whatever they please. This leads to extreme variation - from cars to getaways to decorations. People who aren't 'rich' are susceptible to ignoring these distinctions, filtering expensive goods and services through their own conditioned expectations. Flashier cars, bigger houses are not strictly longed by just the wealthy - it's closer to the truth to say that they're characteristic desires of people who want to be wealthy.

Spending importance has shifted from quality to quantity - how much you have versus the quality of your possessions. Is it really necessary to have three big screen high definition TV's? Americans now, seem to throw out the idea of working hard and saving up for something expensive and meaningful but instead will go into debt and forfeit other aspects of their life in order to have the newest, biggest and best items.

Why is it that just because some wealthy people can afford a lifestyle comfortably that the middle and lower income classes feel they need to live that way too? What are other ways to feel rich that doesn't relate to money?