If you are like me, you have probably grown up with the notion that things with brand names are more dependable. For example, I find that it is much easier to trust Tide laundry soap rather than Purex Detergent. Not only do I know that Tide will do the job, but Purex is unknown to me. For all I know, it might make the colors in my clothes bleed or cause them to smell strangely. But hold the phone, Purex is four dollars cheaper than Tide. What now? Do I go cheap or do I go with something tried and true? Is Tide really that much better than Purex?
If you have ever stood in the isle of a supermarket and been faced with this sort of dilemma then welcome to the club. It happens to me every time I go to the store. Do I want chips-ahoy or do I want random cookie brand I have never heard of? Do I want Dove soap or do I want Eco-soft? It doesn’t matter, the question is always the same and the deciding factor is always money.
In college, the trusted dependability of those brand names we’ve all grown up with tends to go right out the window in favor of what’s cheaper. The sad fact of the matter is that there is only so much cash in the bank. Not only that, but for most people, it’s money that has been saved up over the course of the summer after hours of hard work. For me, those four dollars are equivalent to a half hour of the dreadfully boring task of folding fabrics by myself.Â
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So in the end, do you buy the brand name or the unknown? Well, even though I may hate to admit it I would have to say go with the unknown. College is about being frugal and in the end, soap is just soap and cookies will almost always taste like cookies.