Time magazine’s Charlotte Alter posted a list of 8 Products Women Have Stopped Buying, according to Experian Marketing Services. I agree with some, not that it matters since these top 8 are based on big data, but I like to pretend my “world view” means something. So let’s get started:
1) Pantyhose of any kind – Says Alter, “In the last five years, control-top pantyhose purchases have plummeted by 47%, regular pantyhose purchases have dropped 40%, and knee-high buying is down 59%. Women seem to be ditching hose in favor of tights– those are up 18% since 2009. Because newsflash: black tights look great with anything.”
Spoken like a true Millennial. Black tights don’t actually go good with everything – denim shorts for instance.
2) Diet foods – This makes sense to me since “gluten-free” or organic has probably replaced the idea of diet with healthy. “We’ve seen some serious pushback against chemical-laden “diet foods” in the last five years: sales of sugar-free foods are down 15%, fat-free foods have dipped 17% (low-fat is down 13%,) and low-cholesterol foods are down 22%.”
3) Diet cola – I actually did not believe this, but Google’s crack search team proved me wrong, as did Alter and the Experian study: “Remember when women downed diet sodas like water? Not anymore. Diet cola sales have plummeted 21% since 2009, and non-cola diet soda sales have dropped even more, by 26%.”
4) Cigarettes and anti-smoking products – I think this is a gimme. Smoking has been on the decline for years, which Alter notes: “Since fewer women smoke than men (only about 16% of American women smoke, compared to more than 20% of men) and since smoking overall has been on the decline since 2005, this shouldn’t come as a huge surprise.” Both cigarettes and products that help people quit smoking (like patches or gum) have seen sales dip in the last five years: Cigarettes are down 13%, and anti-smoking products have sunk by 18%.
5) Hair products – WRONG my friend, Ms. Alter. I plan to investigate this ridiculous suggestion myself. If my bathtub is any indication of the growth of hair care products then I will be coming out on top. Stay tuned!
Read the final three at Time.com.
What other things have you stopped buying? Here are a few of my top no longer must haves:
1) Yogurt
2) Fast Food
3) Church every Sunday