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By Alice Gibbs
Senior Reporter
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A millennial man has gained viral attention after sharing how a shift in consumer culture has left him feeling sorry for the younger generation.
"I feel so bad for Gen Z," Andrew Briggs said in the video, which has garnered more than 744,000 views on TikTok. "None of them have any idea what it is like to buy something and have it last you for life."
Briggs contrasts the throwaway culture of today with a more durable past. He showcases his own well-worn but still-sturdy boots and slippers, describing the latter as a Christmas gift from his mom 15 years ago.
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"Look at how much tread there is. These look brand new," Briggs says, holding them up. "These boots were one of my first big purchases after high school. I've had to get them resoled once. That's it."
Briggs isn't just nostalgic—he is pointing to systemic shifts in how products are made and consumed. "Every generation, things get worse. There are plans to immediately fall apart and hopefully get immediately replaced by the consumer," Briggs says, citing how today's economy seems built around the cycle of replacement, not repair.
It is true that we are purchasing more, and spending less. According to the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI), in 1972-73, American families spent about 7.8 percent of their household budget on clothing and shoes—roughly $565 a year. Today, despite higher overall income levels, clothing accounts for just 2.7 percent of average household spending, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
At the same time, the volume of clothing purchased has ballooned. In 1972, Americans bought an average of 28 garments per person per year. By 2021, that number had jumped to 69. This surge in consumption, paired with lower costs, points to a fast-fashion economy built on mass production, low prices, and disposability.
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Reduction in Quality
This shift aligns with the global rise of outsourcing production to low-cost labor markets starting in the 1980s when brands moved to producing products overseas for lower costs. Today, well-known online retailers dominate the fashion landscape by offering ultra-trendy styles at rock-bottom prices. But with this has come with a drop in quality.
Jeanel Alvarado, retail strategist, founder and CEO of RETAILBOSS, told Newsweek: "There has been a significant reduction in the quality of clothing for a number of the major retailers and apparel brands.
"Fabrics have become noticeably thinner across various clothing categories. For example, T-shirts once weighed between 8 and 10 ounces per square yard but now typically weigh only half that amount.
"Natural fibers are increasingly being replaced with synthetic alternatives. What was once 100 percent cotton is now often a blend containing polyester and Elastane, resulting in clothing that wears out faster," Alvarado said.
Replacement, not Repair
And it is not just fashion. Briggs also touches on the increasingly unrepairable nature of technology: "Like I'm a millennial. I know a little bit about car maintenance, but compared to Gen X, it looks like I don't know a f****** thing … Vehicles started getting so complicated. We were not meant to really fix any of this stuff anymore," he said.
A nationally representative Right to Repair Survey of 2,154 U.S. adults in 2024 found that 58 percent of consumers replace broken appliances such as refrigerators or washing machines, with only 26 percent attempting repairs first.
For smaller appliances, people are even more likely to throw away than repair, with 72 percent saying they have thrown away a broken toaster oven, blender or coffee maker, and only 14 percent tried to repair.
In the comments on the viral video, people shared their own thoughts and experiences with consumer culture.
Viewer Hannah Marie wrote: "I am an older Gen Z. The fridge that we had growing up lasted 20 years the replacement we had just bought not even a full 4 years ago broke and the repair man looked at it and told us to buy a new one."
The Sam-ulation pointed to a different issue: "While yes, it's a million times cheaper to fix it yourself/DIY a lot of things. But the issue is that no one ever teaches us how."
"It's capitalism at its finest. It's all a money grab. Everything is a subscription. Everything is cheaply made on purpose to force us to buy more of this or that," added Chell.
Others said that, while it is possible to buy products that last longer, they are out of reach for many. Megabite567 wrote: "What sucks is you CAN find products that last forever, but they're hella expensive."
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