Cheap, cheap, cheap!

[gene]

And I'm not talking about birds.

We talk often on this forum about how new furniture is being made cheaper and cheaper.

I just hired a company to put in replacement windows in my house. He said he has been doing this for 30 years.

He said he used to replace windows that were 30 to 40 years old. Today he does windows that are 20 years old on average.

He said he gets at least one call a month for windows that are 3 to 5 years old and need replacing.

Every industry seems to be cutting back on quality.

gene

[SHHR]

I believe it, My parents home was built in 1957 and purchased by them in 64. My dad did an addition/remodel in 1974 with new double pane windows. He and I just replace those 3 or 4 years ago, however a friend who had a house custom built 10 years ago is now replacing all of his windows due to air leaks and breakage of the double hung mechanisms.

[Rich]

I see two factors at work that seem to be degrading the quality of just about everything these days. One is the need to be competitive, the other is the desire to insure future business. I think both are at work, I'm just not sure which is the driving force. Do manufacturers cheapen the quality of their products primarily to keep their prices competitive? Or is the conscious effort on their part to make sure their products don't last as long as they used to even more important to them?
I think 50 years ago a product that didn't last wouldn't sell for very long b/c it would be avoided by customers, but today  it seems that people just accept that nothing lasts too long anyway and they just replace it. True, the stuff made 50 years ago would probably cost more today, so replacing an item isn't as expensive to do as it was back then.
Rich

[Mojo]

There is one other factor as well at play here - stock holder equity. Companies will do anything and everything to boost stock holder equity which includes laying off in masses, using cheap materials and shoddy construction techniques.

Of course the by product of this is increased revenues/profits and more repeat business as many of you stated.

if you really want to see just how crappy our standards are grab ahold of a product from the 40's and 50's and compare it to a like product manufactured yesterday.

Chris

[baileyuph]

A manufacturer is forced to compete with a product he builds. There is a variance in consumer expectation, meaning quality and price of something. IT definitely depends on the product. IN the electronics world, consumers put more value on those items than for example, upholstered furniture.

Continuing, consumers have been observed to readily announce that they paid a lot of money for a electronics device, example Apple product. But, in contrast to that example, how much does it do for consumer ego if they buy a sofa for $3,000 to $5000? IN our business we hear it regularly repeated by a consumer that they paid a lot of money for a sofa even if it was about the lowest priced one available for under a $1000 or so. Bottom line, consumers do not put as much value on upholstered furniture.

That said, if you were a manufacturer or even a retailer of upholstered furniture, would you fill the market with high quality $3000 to $5000 sofa?  I doubt that and those that produce the same don't either, that would likely put them out of business. Therefore, they are forced to produce and retail upholstered furniture that meets consumer expectations, that is the only items that will sell.

It took a minute but what is driving the furniture industry, what they make? The answer is simply what sells. If what sells is the cheapest on the market, then who is the blame for lack of high quality and intrinsic values?  

Price sells which is driven by consumer expectation. These are the strongest forces in marketing. That wrapped with the vitality of the market is the package a manufacturer and retailer is faced with. That and the objective to stay in business are the constraints they are working under.

Doyle  

[Mike]

My house was built in the 70s and has most of the original sindow working perfectly. Except for a onr that was damaged in hurricane charly. Then that  one to be replaced

[sofadoc]

When a consumer in the 50's bought a new sofa, their intent was for it to last through at least a couple of recoverings. They hoped to get 20 (or more) years out of it, and by then it would probably be out of style anyway. Then, if they stuck it in their attic for another 20, their kids would want it for that "retro" look.

Today's consumer doesn't even want to get that kind of service from their furniture. They want a new sofa every few years. So why spend big bucks?

I believe that not only is furniture built to last less than 5 years, it's intentionally built to not last 5 years. If the manufacturers could equip each piece with a self-destruct timer, they would.

[Rich]

So, in other words, we're a country of short term thinkers and marketers are selling to that mentality.
Rich

[DBR1957]

I wonder if the windows being replaced were vinyl windows. Vinyl will shrink with age and is more
susceptible to dimension stability with temperature change.

[crosjn]

IMHO, manufacturing and business is often shot in the head with ownership - and what I mean is that our systems of outsourcing (differing production and significant amounts of quality control) and revolving CEO's (who basically act as owners of public companies) do NOT reward longevity.  They reward low-cost reliable production (reliable meaning "able to meet delivery requirements" and "doesn't break before the warranties up".)  For CEO's, the system rewards enhanced revenue and or profitability.

In my opinion, the system really factors out rewards for longevity.  In fact, it almost penalizes longevity within the chosen segment (and that segment may be "high-end furniture" differentiated from the $600 sofa at rooms to go.)  You don't get an bonus points as a manufacturer for making a sofa that lasts 50yrs instead of 20yrs.  In fact, there's a reasonable argument to be made that spending the extra $50 in manufacturing to make a frame outlast the fabric probably isn't a super-smart idea since most customers view a sofa as a unit and if the fabric fails, the sofa has essentially failed.

I need to post a photo of the new (4month old I think she said) ottoman someone just sent in for repair from "The Dump."  (if you don't have one it's a low-priced retailer who claims to sell super-high quality items for low cost.)  I'd fire, no questions asked, the upholsterer who sent out a job out the way this was done.  It's unbelievable.  But who gets held accountable?  No one.