This may seem like an obvious one, but there are actually a couple of simple things brand loyalists could do to keep their favourite small business running. If you really like a product or service, then you should reward the business by helping them grow, or at least not fail.

Not for their sake, dear God no, but so you can keep getting the things you like! Hashtag Selfless.


Accompanying us will be some cartoons from a fantastic 'marketoonist', Tom Fishburne.


Buy their Product Regularly

Firstly, there's something called the Double Jeopardy law which dictates that not only will a small business have less customers than a big business (which is logical), their customers will also buy less from them.

If you look at the products you buy, you will almost certainly notice that you tend to return to bigger brands every so often or most of the time. This is simply because they're generally cheaper and more available to purchase. The best way to support the smaller brands that you love isn't just to buy from them, it's to make an effort to buy from them as often as possible! Double Jeopardy causes the demise of numerous small businesses and it's not hard to counteract.



Participate in Customer Surveys/Feedback

Most businesses conduct market research to get a better picture of how they can benefit you more. They also love love love getting feedback from you, positive or negative! If you have a problem with a brand that you support, tell them. And if you get an email asking you to fill in a questionnaire, do it.

Responding to market research is important if you want to live in a world where products and services are actually GOOD. Steve Jobs has kinda ruined this, because he was famously anti-research. He was a genius, but many businesses are now convinced that he disproved marketing research as being a crucial tool for businesses. 3d televisions were only consumer tested reactively, nobody actually asked consumers if we wanted 3d TVs!

absolootelymail@gmail.com if you have any feedback about this very site ;-)




Tell People

This is really obvious and I suspect all of you already do this. Word-of-mouth is free and one of the best forms of advertising out there. People are more likely to buy a product if it was recommended by a friend and less likely to buy it if they hear something bad about it through their social grapevine.

In the spirit of Word-of-mouth, I'd like to give a shout out to Much Moore who do a fantastic Chocolate & Cookies ice-cream. It's delicious, you should try it.




I've kept this nice and short, relatively, which was hard, because I have so many more ideas and marketing theories that I wanted to discuss! Ah well...

I'm not a huge fan of basics like striped t-shirts, but I do love a cute tee. And this is the cutest cute tee of all the cute tees.



I bought this for about $8 (USD) from here, which is cheaper than any current versions I can find. Searching "parachute stripe" under Woman's T-Shirts seems to be the best way to find it on AliExpress.

Mine's a size Large, which is about a size 10 UK. That is, of course, not remotely Large, but that's AliExpress for you. It has a tight fit and is actually pretty flattering, though it's just a lil' bit short. Best worn with high-waisted bottoms, unless you like showing off that awkward bit of stomach just below your belly button.


I'm so in love with the little embroidered balloons, parachutes, hearts, planets and rockets! They're subtle enough that you can wear the tee with basically anything, but add some whimsy to an otherwise plain outfit. It's a really good design, I'd be surprised if it wasn't ripped off some fancy label. I can't find evidence of an 'original', so I'll have to give credit to an anonymous wholesaling company.

Much as I love this top, there is, however, a flaw. The neck ribbing is a bit loose, so it sticks out and doesn't sit nice and flat. It was much worse before I sewed it in at the shoulders, but I didn't quite manage to fix it completely. As with the dupe leggings we reviewed earlier, I do recommend this t-shirt, but only if you don't mind doing a bit of tweaking. It's a pretty simple fix, really.

That damned collar ribbing!

I got the Black version, but it also comes in Green and Blue. I ummed-and-ahhed for a while before choosing a colour, because they're all so cool!

Blue & White

Green & White

Seriously, I want 'em all. I wish they were still available for under $10! The cheapest I could find was $13 (USD), which is still very reasonable, I suppose.

Ratings
Product Quality: 4/5
Accuracy of Description: 3/5 (The photos are a bit misleading, the fit and the neck are quite different.)
Similarity to Original: N/A

[If you're new here, Fool's Gold is a regular segment in which we examine dupes. Because it mightn't be real gold, but in this case, it's just as good!]


These Dior earrings have been around for a few months and have been worn by such people as Jennifer Lawrence, Rihanna, Cara Delevigne, Emma Watson and Charlize Theron. They're pretty hot right now, suffice to say.

From the Mise-En-Dior earring product page

I think they're pretty great, so I headed straight to AliExpress the first time they appeared on J-Law and found that there are loads of them to be found for very cheap prices. You can find them in every colour imaginable and in a few different sizes to boot.

I had no idea which to get, so I bought three pairs, from this page. I got 16mm Champagne, 16mm Pink and 18mm Pearl, all of which I thought would be nice and understated varieties. I might buy a more bold pair, because, spoiler alert, I totally love these!

Left-to-Right: 18mm Pearl, 16mm Champagne, 16mm Pink

These are the parts

Looking at photos of the Dior originals, they actually look much heavier than mine. In the above photo of Jennifer Lawrence, you can see that her earlobe is slightly bent to accomodate the extra weight of the back section. This doesn't happen with the dupe versions, as they're very light. I think the Dior ones would actually be very uncomfortable!

18mm Pearl

16mm Pink

As for prices, Mise-En-Dior retail at about $450 (USD). The dupes can be found for under $2 a pair. Sure, you're never going to convince anyone that they're the real thing, but that's not really the point. If you like the style, you can get it for dirt cheap!

I'd totally suggest getting a couple of pairs. You can play mix-and-match with the balls, swapping around the front sections. Hour and hours of fun.


Ratings
Product Quality: 5/5
Accuracy of Description: 5/5
Similarity to Original: 4/5

If you look to the navigation bar, you may notice a bit of a change! We've replaced "Contact" with "Forum", which is pretty exciting!

Just a screenshot...

Looking around the web, we couldn't really find a place for people to discuss specific consumer problems and triumphs, so we figured it was about time someone created a place for that.

We used Talki to create our Forum, and so far it's been okay in our tests. It's definitely the best option for embeddable forums, but it seems to not work 100% with Firefox. The set up is nice and simple, and it's so cool that you can sign in with your social media accounts, instead of having to make a whole new account.

I know this is really boring, but please read the Guidelines & Rules post, which is located under General. We've made it nice and simple, promise!

Kate is the Moderator, which gives her total power (Mwahahahaha!). Talki only allows for one Moderator on the free version, so it's really just her doing the policing and admin at this stage. Keep that in mind.

Head to our new Forum and have a nosey round! Please sign-in, with one of your social media accounts, and say Hi :-)

My dog, Dusty, in her widdle socks!

So I took a photo for this post, then realised I already had a much better option. You can decide which is better, but I think we can agree that baby spaniels are better than 100% of other things.

Thanks for the bunny socks, Grandma!

Since it's Spring/Autumn everywhere, the whole world is in a similar situation, where the weather is sorta inbetween and all over the place. Spring/Autumn is perfect sock weather, because they'll keep your feet warm while you break out or taper out your summer skirts.

I found LOADS of cool socks on AliExpress, but do be careful, as they tend to be suited for size 34-39 feet. As of the time I clipped these, they were under $5 (USD) and available for sale.

Keep an eye out for the Star Wars and toilet paper motif ones. Such options...

We usually review brand new items that everyone can get their hands on, but I felt this was just as useful! I spend a fair amount of time in opshops, so I'm always on the look out for things to be on the look out for, and I'm happy to add to other peoples' scavenging quests.

Over the past three years, I've found a couple of vintage binocular cases in opshops, just your standard, unfancy, no-frills thrift stores. And I absolutely adore mine, so I highly recommend snatching one up if you stumble upon it.


The first one I bought comes with a story that makes it twice as special. I saw the most beautiful bag, like, ever in Ziggurat, a fancy Wellington vintage boutique, when I was about 16. The red lining was what I really loved, because it was so stunning. The bag was $70 though, which meant it was far too pricey for me. However, I added it to my birthday wishlist and would pay visits to gaze upon it every time I was in the area.


This stopped, eventually, and I forgot about it completely. Until the day, about a year or so later, we were reunited. I was rummaging through bags in Recycle Boutique, a secondhand clothing chain store, when I suddenly saw my coveted bag, just chillin' with the other, inferior, cases. I think the most probable reason for it switching stores is that someone bought it from Ziggurat, for $70, and gave it to Recycle Boutique after it broke.


Oh, and I am certain it was the same bag. But it had some extra wear to it and it had a couple of issues. However, it was $15 and I still loved it, so there was really nothing stopping me from running to the counter to finally make it mine.

It did need some fixing up, which I was into, because it's not hard and it means you can get a great vintage item for a cheap price. I had to sew the fastening strap back on and replace the lid lining. Both of these tasks were very easy, and it allowed me to personalize it with some pretty nautical fabric.

The two pieces where my finger is had to be sewn back together.

I use this bag regularly and it's definitely the best bag I've ever had. It's really sturdy and holds a good amount of items. I don't mind that it isn't soft and flexible like fabric bags, because it means that it's pretty good at protecting my things. The main reason I adore it is because I think it's really whimsical and it always gets attention. It was made to hold binoculars, which is something a few people guess, but most people just assume it's a cool vintage bag.


A month ago, I was hanging around a Salvation Army store in mid-Wellington, when I spied an almost identical bag to the one I had around my shoulder. I became a bit self-conscious as I approached it, wondering if people would notice the girl with an unusual vintage bag admiring a very similar one. And after I bought it, I suppose I did look a bit like a hipster voyeur, walking around town with my two vintage binocular cases.


My first bag has a gorgeous red lining, so I expected the second one to have a similar shade. Much to my surprise and delight, it has a bright purple lining! So cool! Even cooler was the price: $5.


However, like my first bag, this bag was also slightly broken. One of the little pieces of leather holding the strap in place had been torn. I've fixed this by hand-stitching the broken pieces back together, which has done a really good job so far. If the stitches stop holding, I'll glue the strap to the base and the broken bits to the strap. It's fine. It was $5 and better than any bag I've bought brand new.


Some other differences between the bags is that the second one is a dark brown, while the first is tan. The first one has a longer strap. They both have adjustable straps, which is really useful, so you can alter the length. The first one has "Made in Japan" stamped on the bottom, but the second one has no claim about its origin. Both are a little scruffy, which is to be expected from vintage items, and it justs makes them look what they are (old and heavily used).


If you find one of these, NAB IT! They are awesome bags and they really add some charm and whimsy to every outfit. And they're super practical, to boot.

I've had a nosey round online and I haven't found many bags at all, let alone for as cheap as mine were. The main problem seems to be people emphasising "Vintage" and that shipping isn't cheap (if only this beauty was a bit cheaper!). Also, most of them come with binoculars, which bumps the price up. There are different styles to the ones I have, which is pretty cool. These bags are wasted on binoculars!

Apparently my late granddad had one of these bags in storage, so if I'm lucky, I'll have another in my collection soon, that is extra special because it's an heirloom. Look out for these in your grandparents' homes, they're totally the sort of thing your oldies would have had back in the old days.

Happy thriftin', everyone!