Pinch Like You Mean It! 101 Ways to Spend Less Money Now by Dr. Penny Pincher - HTML preview

Tip 49: Buy fewer things, but better quality

For me, shoes are a good example of where I can benefit from buying fewer items of higher quality.  I normally buy cheap shoes that wear out in a year or so.  Since the shoes are cheaply constructed, they can't really be repaired and get thrown away.  A smarter approach is to spend more buying quality shoes that will last a few years.  I have an old pair of black wing tip dress shoes that probably cost around $100- but I have been wearing them for 25 years.  I recently got a new pair of brown leather shoes that were a lot more than I usually pay.  These were purchased to replace a pair of shoes that I got for $8, but was throwing away because they were falling off my feet.  I tried stuffing crumpled up tissue paper in the toes, but I could not get them to fit right.

Another example of buying something of high quality that lasted a long time is the brown leather coat I bought back in college.  I still wear it today 20 years later.  It is a very warm winter coat and I bought it on clearance one spring for $65.  I have bought cheap coats that have only lasted a couple years before developing large holes or having the zipper fail.

Sometimes the cheapest option is not the best option.  Sometimes spending a little more money can get you something that will last much longer and provide a better value over the life of the product.  Try to balance being cheap with being frugal.

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