Bonfire of the Brands

I recently discovered the Bonfire of the Brands website and book, thanks to the Good Consumer video I talked about a few days ago.

I really love the idea behind this site and I ordered the book. Below are a few excellent quotes (my titles in bold) from the website. I recommend taking more time to read it yourself—there is a lot of great content to be found.

The Basic Problem:

These are the facts: Chain stores dominate our high streets. Adverts dominate our media. And brands dominate our culture – to the extent that owning the right products defines what it is to be normal. For some people this isn’t an issue – they shop for pleasure, they love the big brands, and they feel comfortable being sold to all day. I’m not one of those people. Well, not anymore. I’ll give you three reasons why:

1. Non-essential consumption is a root cause of the situation we find ourselves in today – the environment, the economy and popular culture are all affected by the drive towards consumer growth.

2. Consumerism doesn’t work – in that it’s supposed to make us happy. Not in any sustainable way. Shopping is like a drug – the instant high is fantastic, but it’s never enough.

3. We’re starting to lose the choice. There are millions of consumer choices on the shelves. But alternatives to consumerism isn’t one of them. It’s virtually impossible to live brand-free and be normal.

Consumerism:

Buy Less Live More

If we don’t shift to a less consumerist and throwaway society, we’ll hit crisis after crisis, and it’s coming soon.

Think about it:

The Mark Of A Moron

It’s surely the mark of an individual to refuse to be branded. It’s daft to spend money on Nike clothes. The mark of a moron. Anyone who does so has been merely duped by the million-dollar marketing campaigns. To buy Nike shows a sheep-like nature and a lack of imagination and style.

Who in their right mind would want to be branded, like a cow? A brand identifies you as someone else’s property. It is the mark of a tamed and exploited animal. Brands promise freedom but they deliver the opposite: the worst kind of slavish conformity.