As inflation increases, younger American consumers are looking for deals and buying less, potentially triggering an economic slowdown. NBC News Vicky Nguyen reports on the latest trend, “underconsumption core,” which glamorizes a frugal lifestyle.
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#consumption #economy #influencers
P.S. I’m trying not to leave my house anymore cause I can’t afford it!
Emm hmm. Due in part to the wonderful job Biden and Harris did in these last 4 years. Just saying.
UCC
Normal people: We don’t make a lot of money, so we’re going to stop over consuming because it destroys our own lives (physically and mentally) as well as the environment
Rich capitalists: oH No EcONoMIc SloWDown
Exactly… it’s so unsustainable. Basically we should just keep buying stuff just because? & with what money? It’s so ridiculous
god forbid people find happiness without spending money and fueling the machine of capitalism
I’m drinking less and doing low cost activities. I rather be able to save money for later and I no longer care to keep up with others.
I haven’t bought very many new clothes over the past few years. I have a job that’s paying me fairly well so I’ll be spending more on clothing…..right after I catch up on other things I couldn’t afford to pay for like dental care and household items I’ve been wanting for a while. My goal is to buy clothing that can last for years.
Yup, less is more. No one cares about what car you drive or what you wear.
Basically everyone has been downsizing since Bidenomics. Just wait until that cackling hyena gets in office. Will get worse.
It’s about time!!!!
7.00 Fritos
Nobody forced you to buy anything. You clicked purchase. You entered your payment method.
“Underconsumption (Is that even a word?) core”?
Is that what we’re calling living within your means?
Also, can we agree that “Influencers” ENTIRELY need to go away?
Retired early at 44 by not spending in crap (only experiences) and completely support this movement.
We can’t afford to spend lol. This should come as no surprise. Lower prices. Make it easier for us to live.
So a recession is here? Got it.
this needs to be viral… because we need to freeze the GREED of big corporations!!!
Bums lol
Did anyone else notice the credit card was in backwards in the thumbnail?
No one is going to talk about the stagnant wages and mass layoffs possibly contributing to the economic slowdown? Or government monetary policy?
Yeah, capitalism is the problem not the Gov taxing me $15,000 a year…get real.
It’s giving broke boy
FINALLY…. the death of influencer culture.
2020 lets have a lockdown that leads to money printing, supply chain issues, a distored economy in general. 2022 virus free to circulate in society, rebound economy happening with lots of spending. Inflation takes off. Interest rates rise to decrease inflation. 2024 economy about to go into recession.
😂😂😂 it’s good for my wallet and pocket (that’s more important)
I wish i could over consume
This is something only a yuppie would ever be able to do
It’s called “poverty”. 😂
Good let it crash. Stop spending so much and learn to HODL 😂
Try socializing with people outside of your cocktail parties, and you will see why people are being frugal.
Easy to blame other for not having self control and difference between needs and wants.
Great news! Hopefully it’s a long term trend!
This exact thing happened during the great recession. It’ll be a thing then it won’t. Most people have an insatiable desire to acquire crap. Like a diet of sorts. Everyone will jump on but most will go for the donuts after a bit so to speak.
My parents used to tell me to spend less and save more when I was a teenager in the 2000s.
When the system starts freaking out, you know you’re doing the right thing
This is called “making the most with what you have” and it’s not a trend.
China and Korea have been doing this for a while. It’s called “revenge savings” and their Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z’s are experts at it…. now that I think about it, I’m sure their version of minimalism should be all over YT by now!
I just imagine some person addicted to social media looking away from their phone for more than 5sec and suddenly realizing they dont need trendy goods.
Tiktok, Instagram, and so on are nothing but view grabbing. These people are acting ‘frugal’, when those body products are a luxury to lots of people.
Millennial here, this is what we call “adulting” or as our folks taught us “responsibility” and “budgeting”. Many of us have been doing it all our lives. Granted we didn’t grow up with internet shopping at our fingertips, but it’s a simple concept: Don’t buy things you don’t need just to fit in or keep up with the Jones or influencers. As our grandparents and great-grandparents called it: Common Sense. This is not a new concept.🙄
Overconsumption is a new concept. Folks used to reuse and reuse, fix up, and make the most of things all the time. I love how every couple of years some people discover reusing, recycling, canning, gardening, homemade, etc and act like it’s a “new” thing and they just came up with the notion. 🙄 Those of us who grew up wearing hand-me-downs and shopped at thrift stores before going home to harvest the garden with our parents, then can with our grandparents, are chuckling.
Also, make-up for most people is not essential, so not sure how that figures into underconsumption.
And another aspect of overconsumption is watching way to many social media videos of influencers telling you what to buy or not buy and following trends.
Smart Frugality. Use Wisdom though and get what you need & can get while you can still access it. Go in store skip online b.s.
I dig in the bargain bins for inventory the stores are trying to get rid off so they sell at a very low price. A lot of the clerks make remarks that I am snagging up the deals!
Just say no to corporate greed across the board, corporate tv too. Less is much more.
Why can’t they call it Saving!
Maybe pay workers a living wage.
Back in my day we called that being broke!👴
Absolutely disgusting how much news organizations miss the point or even the reality we are living through.
Also known as a boycott
Not the media trying to pull a “blame young people for the failings of greedy businesses” like how it did in 2008 😂
I always thought this was minimalism and non-consumerism
They’re mad at us for trying to be frugal. 😂
Imagine that cost of living keeps going up, now the goverments wondering why the sheep arent breeding or consuming as much
This is actually just another ploy to garner attention to people who feel they need to be validated and solidified in their choices… the constant need for affirmation because they actually feel lack within. If you don’t want to see someone’s store front or products? Then don’t.., and don’t buy.,, and take some accountability for your choices privately… the entire world does not need to know how you’re being frugal and wearing clothes from a thrift store…. Real people have been doing this for lifetimes lol
If you really want to know why corporations keep flip flopping on what consumers are doing.
It’s because all they care about is their bottom line
Also btw the #fed only tells “how good the economy is” by consumer sentiment/habits
It dosnt take into account workers stats
Which seems completely BS workers making less money affects “the consumer”, it affects “stocks”, its affects every aspect of the economy
But the rich aka shareholders, investment firms, wallstreet
Constantly go back and forth on “what to blame young people on” when it comes to the economy because, they can’t address the elephant in the room
We aren’t being paid enough, because they need to inflate stock prices to the top 1%, who hoard their wealth in offshore tax havens, they don’t want to pay us wages, they don’t want to pay taxes. They literally are stealing from us all and then blaming us for “being robbed by them”, because we got born in the wrong class
Why are acting like people being conscious of overspending money is a bad thing
i need to sell most of these clothes
Can’t wait for some old finance guys to come out claiming kids these days are going to ruin society by not buying into consumerism/capitalism. ..
“People aren’t spending enough, they’re the reason for this economic slowdown!”
“People are spending too much, there’s so much debt!”
What do y’all want from us…
The card is being inserted backwards in your thumbnail
People are broke. That’s why
This is so gaslighty, again
We’re all poor. What don’t they understand?
This is a stupid way to say broke people who’re underpaid aren’t spending money they don’t have
How can people “consume” if they don’t have money?
Wooo that’s me at 2:08 😂🎉
Americans: spending responsibly and reasonably with consideration for the environment, their wallets, and their futures
Corporate America, the Economy, the Government: and I took that personally
After telling us to stop buying coffee and avocados for years, now they’re suddenly upset when people actually decide to spend thoughtfully and look out for their wallets now and into the future.
Privileged people say to poor people, “Don’t spend money if you don’t have it, stay frugal and responsible!”
Poor people, “OK, we won’t spend money and we will be responsible.”
Privileged people, “No wait, not like that! You’re hurting the economy!”
Poor people, “OK, then how about some financial assistance to help us help keep the economy flowing?”
Privileged people, “No, that’s socialism! If you don’t have money, don’t spend it! Be responsible!”
Lather, rinse, repeat…
Its a short lived trend as many others.
Under consumption? How about overcharging?
It’s about time
And some people don’t want to contribute to so much waste 🤷🏻♀️ So many resources and energy going into making junk that’ll end up in landfills. Earth can only handle so much 🌎 Companies are greedy
Time for a new economic model that doesn’t entirely depend on us destroying everything in the name of ‘growth’. It’s not that new an idea – maybe it’s finally catching on
Oh freaking well. We aren’t benefitting from overconsumption, corporations are. They’ll just have to find another way to make their undeserved billions.
I screeched to a halt with buying stuff about a year ago.
So remember, Tuesday is Soylent Green day…
What absolute crap. This isn’t new nor fresh nor trendy. Been back and forth for 50 years.
Lower prices!
Im going the other way with this. Im going to buy a Lexus and get a 1900 $ chain
More of this!
Consumers overspending = consumers are being irresponsible and overstretch themselves. Consumers reduce their spending = consumers will drive the next recession. It’s always our fault isn’t it.
This is crazy. Not shopping all the time is NORMAL. It’s how people have lived for centuries. People are just trying to get by and have a healthier relationship with consumption, and they’re warned that it may damage the economy.
Good, let’s not feed the global elites anymore 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
We are fed up with capitalism. It’s slowly killing everyone on earth.
Stop buying crap you dont need
So they’re gentrifying poverty 😵💫
Wow it seems like there’s a gender component to all of this…
Good!
Good. Overconsumption can and will be the end of humanity (disillusion, climate change, unsustainable lifestyles, and economic bubbles) long before underconsumption core could ever become a problem. — Not to mention how the current digital landscape is built (I say rigged, see Google’s monopoly ruling) solely for consumption and lost girp on the free-flowing and empowering “information superhighway” of the 90s. We need to get a grip. Be frugal, stay satisfied, and the world will open up.
I agree with this new trend, less stuff, you save more and feel better with yourself.
I think you mean corporate greed.
Underconsumption doesn’t have to mean spending less. You can still splurge on fancy foods, fun events, concerts. Instead of buying crap, put money towards things that actually enrich living
So being financially responsible is trending and it’s going to ruin the economy?
Um no, this is what everyone should have been always been doing.
Give the Planet a break!
It’s not what you have that makes you successful. it’s what you can walk away from.
Growing up in the 70s, we grew our own food, had just 1 car, bought day-old goods at Nickle’s bakery and only vacationed at a local amusement park, once a year, and even then, took a picnic basket. And we were middle class.
I hope this is permanent
It’s got nothing to do with the environment, it’s frugal, but it’s because they are lazy and don’t want to work so they spend less and second hand because they again are lazy. My husband and I have been spending secondhand for over 30 years. Why do you think we have thrift and antique stores. It’s not because the younger generation created the trend.
Yeah right, this trend is trying to go against the internet FOMO 😂😂😂
You should save and invest your money. Dont buy things you dont need. You dont need the same item in every color.
The less you have, the easier and faster you can clean. You have more time to do things you want to do.
Stay out of debt. Buy what you can afford. I never wasted money on luxury items because our parents showed us they are a waste of money. They taught us the value of a dollar.
If your young, find things you can do to make money,, save money, and invest.
The causation isn’t the correlation here. The economic downturn has been here for over a year underconsumption core just started trending because people realized there’s no point in wanting more since we’re all broke
Are we blaming folks for not having money again?