The New Social Media Cycle: Overconsumption and Mass Production
Minimalism is out, extravagant-ism is in
I don't know if you guys remember the show "Tidying up with Marie Kondo", but I used to watch it and think "wow that looks so relaxing, I should do that" and then I would never go through all of my things because the job itself was too overwhelming. Well...maybe I'm just a tad bit lazy. But, that was the thing in 2019: minimalism. Living a simple life with a few things and making sure everything was nice and tidy. However, it has now been taken to an extreme called underconsumption core. And for some people, this might work. Owning one pair of shoes, a few small kitchen appliances, and no home decor. However, this doesn't work from some people. And for those people, me included, we get the other end of the spectrum: overconsumption core.
Overconsumption core is the result of a few different factors. First off, in the early days of Youtube, fashion Youtubers would show off their outfits in a "lookbook" video and show off their purchases or gifts in a "haul" video. These hauls were not meant to be a symbol of status. They were meant to be helpful, teaching videos for people who wanted to up their style game (me...I'm people. I grew up on Brooklyn and Bailey and Bethany Mota and Zoella). I loved watching haul videos. However, Tik Tok has turned haul videos into a competition. Haul videos became popular and was a great way to get a lot of views because it included different brands and genuine reviews. But it became a competition in the sense that everyone is trying to out-spend each other to see who can buy the best brands. Hauls have become its genre of Tik Tok post, it's no longer just a post about fashion. Many on Tik Tok have started calling themsleves "shopaholics" and have created their own Tik Tok community.
So, the shopaholic community on Tik Tok is really fun to watch, but, you see lots of repetitive items. For example, some girls will do a shower haul. In that haul there are probably 5 or so different shampoo and conditioner combintations and like 10 soap/body scrub combinations. Now most of us would only buy one of each thing, use it, and then replace it. But they have a whole collection. I don't think having a collection is normal. In fact, most of these influencers get paid to promote these products and recieve them for free. So, your makeup collection does not need to consist of 20 different foundations and 11 concealers. That being said, a variety of blush or lipstick or eye shadow is totally fine as long as you will use it (before it expires). Otherwise, I think it might just be a waste of money. Luckily, there are stores like TJ Maxx that have name brand items for a lower cost. That way those of us who do like variety can save some money.
Speaking of TJ Maxx, the shopaholics have a new trend: personal online shopping. We all know about personal shopping irl. I learned about it on the show Friends when Rachel wanted to be a personal shopper. However, this is just a bit different. Tik Tokers are going shopping at stores like TJ Maxx or Home Goods and live streaming their shopping experience. However, instead of buying items for themselves, they buy the items for other people. People can leave comments claiming the items for the prices they are given. The price is jacked up becuase they pay the full price for the items (including tax), shipping, and a "finders fee". A finders fee is an extra expense given to the people buying these items and the expense varies based on the popularity of the item. However, the issue with this is how aggressive these influencers are when they find something they think is cute but it won't sell. They will buy up so many products in the stores that by the time actual customers come to the stores, there's nothing left to buy. Influencers have become so successful with this, they are able to earn a liveable wage and quit their job. I don't believe this is a sustainable way to earn a living, however, I don't blame them because it's a simple way to earn large sums of money quickly. But I certainly don't think being aggressive is the way to sell items that people can order online or buy in store for much cheaper. It's not as though these people are going to a fancy, exclusive store. But it is an interesting way to shop. Click here to learn more about this.
The trends are always changing. Something I sometimes do that is kind of funny is sometimes I will fall in love with a brand, then change the brand I like for a differnet, more popular brand. Then, the brand I abandoned will become popular. But that's the thing about social media, it moves at the speed of light. It's always changing. Which brings me to my next point, the second factor to effect overconsuption: fast fashion. We will be talking about this in the next post. But until then, best wishes,
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