Boots Theory | Hacker News Reader

Boots Theory

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28 pointsCharlesW7 comments

The actual rich are buying $1000 Gucci shoes that wear out just as fast as a $100 fashion sneaker these days. They put in a $100k kitchen and then do another full remodel in 10 years because it’s not the current style anymore. Cars? They lease or buy every 3 years perpetually so always have a car payment. I’m just not sure I buy this theory in the modern world. Everything we have is designed to last for a few years and then be replaced.

> $1000 Gucci shoes that wear out just as fast as a $100 fashion sneaker

Both are in a different league than really cheap shoes. I used to buy my shoes at Payless when I was younger, and they are literally made with paper, impossible to repair and destined to be trash within 3 months of daily use.

Shoes are an interesting case because they are destined to wear out with enough use, but high quality shoes wear out a lot slower and some kinds can be repaired or resoled, extending the life indefinitely.

Luxury goods are another matter.

> The actual rich are buying $1000 Gucci shoes that wear out just as fast as a $100 fashion sneaker these days.

They don't buy Gucci for the quality.

An under-appreciated side to buying the more expensive option is that the daily experience of use is that much better. Not only are you saving money in the long run but you’re also enjoying it.

Your cost of living tends to go up with your income. Wants and needs rise to meet the income available to them; that is a financial law as rigorously enforced as the Law of Diminishing Returns or the Law of Supply and Demand. That’s why it’s so hard to be rich and get rich at the same time.

The way to beat this phenomenon is either to exercise remarkable self-control…or to outrun your wants and needs with “escape velocity” wealth.

https://dailyreckoning.com/the-concept-of-financial-escape-v...

Do you dispute the conventional thinking that the rich get richer, frequently from passive income?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com