Hopefully I’ve worded the question right.
I was once told (I could never verify if it was true) that a crocs company once almost went bankrupt after they made their crocs practically indestructible. Whilst the story was most likely bullshit, it makes me wonder: if a company can make a product that is practically indestructible, is it ethical for them not to make them indestructible, so people will buy more from them?
The way I look at it is, on one hand, I feel like they should make products to the highest quality if they can so that the consumer has to spend less money and that less is wasted, but at the same time if it leads to the company going bankrupt, what of the workers and their families? So I can’t decide, what do you think?
There are companies that went broke by making their product indestructible, a notable example being the maker of the wildly popular Instant Pot. They made a product that just didn’t break. This is called planned obsolescence failure and has happened to other companies too.
That being said, making flimsy shit on purpose is shady at best.
This is why capitalism is stupid at its core. It doesn’t promote anything good. It only promotes greed and enriching the top. Make the shittiest product you possibly can that people will buy, buy out every other maker of product, repopulate the sector with fake brands to give people illusion of choice.
Oldest trick in the book. And literally not 1 person I know can see through this trickery.
In capitalism making a long lasting good product is not viable at all, it makes no sense. Who gives a shit if your great grandkid is still using your oven 60 years later, the shareholders dont benefit then. Out of business. Its an idiotic system kept alive only by propaganda.
Won’t any one think of the shareholders!!
It would be so easy to fix, too.
the longer your shit lasts, the more your line goes up
Good idea
this is a failure of consumerism, materialism and greed. not capitalism.
Those are all byproducts of unregulated capitalism.
also true
Dont get me wrong, humans are just shit, and I think any system is going to eventually fail because assholes get in power. But more places could at least try a mixed capitalism/socialist approach like we have seen works in Norway/Denmark (at least I think thats how they aporoach it)
Yeah it’s a right dilemma. Because on one hand, I feel like they should make products to the highest quality if they can so that the consumer has to spend less money, but at the same time if it leads to the company going bankrupt, what of the workers and their families?
Think about all the waste that cheap products create. I can buy a cheap pair of work boots twice a year or a good pair every 2/3 years. I believe it’s unethical for preying on the poor while also creating more waste.
True that waste is also a factor in this.
Is it ethical for you as a consumer to buy low quality stuff that you know will break?
Hmm… never thought of that…
You may only have the power over your own purchase decisions, but hold on to what power you have.
For me personally; the parallel of that is that I can fix things and/or upgrade them.
If the companies were required to produce something of a particular durability the average cost would be lower and more accessible to all stratas of society; your ethical argument comes from a place of significant privilege.
Your argument comes from a position of everything is someone else’s fault you are powerless.
It may truly be the case for you. But most other people can make a difference for the better regardless of what the government or companies do.
Ok corpbro.
Companies are not people. They have no ethics. The only thing that keeps them in check is regulation and market forces.
no, of course it’s not. but ethics for the worker and consumer do not exist under capitalism. only for the shareholder.
And if you talk too much about it then u are a communist who killed 8 billion people and likes to eat kids
Is it ethical to do something unethical?
No
You should read about planned obsolescence.
I will
Just engineering something to be garbage for no other reason than so that people will buy more is unethical. That said, there are always trade offs and durability has to be weighed against other priorities.
For example, cars used to have much bigger bumpers which were expected to protect against damage in low speed impacts. Those went away because the requirements changed, the low speed crash test was out, and fuel efficiency requirements were in.
Or there’s incandescent bulbs. They were ubiquitous for over a century, and yet they were constantly burning out and changing them was just a fact of life. Manufacturers could have easily made a more robust filament so the bulb would last longer, but doing so would have dramatically decreased the output of the bulb.
If everyone built them at the highest quality, then every product would be at the highest price point.
Each reduction in quality makes that product available to more people who couldn’t afford it otherwise.
Eventually, the only way to put the product in everybody’s hands is to make it so cheap that it only works once, if you’re lucky.
If everyone built them at the highest quality, then every product would be at the highest price point
I’ll be honest, I didn’t even think of that point. Thanks for sharing, interesting perspective.
It’s also untrue, see my other statement.
In many cases, especially technology and machinery, extra effort is put into making sure they break down on time, just out of warranty. They’d be arguably cheaper without that extra effort.
The highest price points for many items are luxury brands that sell for hundreds to thousands of times the actual cost of manufacture.
Eventually, the only way to put the product in everybody’s hands is to make it so cheap that it only works once, if you’re lucky.
And yet everybody (or close enough) in the world today has a smartphone that generally will last at least a year or two. (Set aside countries that are screwed up because of their govt, that’s another issue entirely). There are lots of things that could be supplied to every person on earth if capitalism wasn’t fucked.
I don’t believe so.
If every product was made with the highest standards of materials and craft, then all of the products would be more expensive. A competitive free market is meant to allow a wider variety of consumers access to products that suit their individual needs, and price is a huge part of those needs.
I do think it’s unethical to charge too much for products that aren’t well made and that it’s a failing of capitalism that it’s not just allowed, but encouraged.
It is unethical. If a company made a product so good it went bankrupt, there should be guardrails to ensure the workers and their families be rightfully compensated for their contribution to the better of society.
We’re drowning in waste because of this mentality of selling things no matter what.
There should be incentives to make great things, there shouldn’t be incentives to be a great stealer.
How would that work exactly? Where would the money for the workers and their families be coming from?
Idk, taxes maybe? They (gvnmt) always find money when they want/need. Securing someone for 6-7 years (enough time to land on your feet) doesn’t seem like too much money on a country level when you consider other areas of spending (defense/consulting/…)
If the company was that good, it must’ve brought some numbers
(I believe, idk I’m no expert at all)
It’s not ethical, it’s capitalism and democracy in the name of the lord Money.
You can pay more to get better made things. Like most refrigerators are trash now, you can buy a commercial grade one and it will last like the one you had in the 70-80s but it costs $5,000+ easily and has nothing special about it.
And half the time you buy that $5000+ refrigerator it’s actually an overpriced shite refrigerator that’ll break in 2 years.
May the odds be in your favor.
Obviously not, thats literally the opposite of what ethics are about…
I’ve been wearing crocs since the beginning, so 20+ years, and I’ve never yet managed to wear a pair out. The only issue I’ve had was that the little croc logo button popped off one and was lost. I wrote to the company and they sent me a replacement button, free. I have I think four pairs in various colours; the most recent I got second-hand on Vinted. My sport involves launching and recovering boats in muddy water, so they’re perfect summer footwear - hose them down and you’re good to go. Also good as house shoes.
FWIW: “In 2025, Crocs revenue stood at $3.3 billion, an increase of 1.5% from the previous year.”
