Tonight, we are old.
Posted by classypassi on February 14, 2013
The idea of “value” will reiterate our very first conversation in class and the concepts found in the Mad Men articles. It’s all about taste, guys. Even our blogs are. It all depends on what people prefer that triggers them to become an immediate extremist.
It is the everyday consumer that decides on what will be trending next, on top of media curators that study the public and help us make our decision by making certain trends have a comeback or cycle back from years past. ”Such ‘old stuff’ may have lost much of its economic value and cultural centrality but still carries enormous sentimental value for some enthusiasts” (Spreadable Media). For example, and an extreme stretch, the new Star Wars movie coming out. Is it as sentimental to fans because it is Star Wars? Does it have the same sentimental value to it because LucasFilms is now owned by Disney? Is this going to change consumers taste and value they have for this pop culture phenomena?
Items like the Furby, Cabbage Patch Kids, and Mr. Potato Head are what Spreadable Media’s references would call as “fast culture”– it is trackable. We knew it once existed and it’s coming back around for those who were attached to them and want that sense of nostalgia with them. The higher the demand, the easier the determination is to ”which trends to prioritize next” (Spreadable Media).
jonesnforart said
I could not help being drawn to the term, “industry cool hunters”(who pick the trends to prioritize next). These are the “they” that determine what we want. I find it kind of depressing and optimistic at the same time. I think because, I hate that someone else is deciding what I want, but on the same hand, often times, “they” are correct in their assumption. Now, this mostly refers to vintage items being brought back and re-marketed to a new audience, but with hopes of re-capturing that sentimental audience of the past. I suppose we are all victims of this to one degree or another, but I’m also admitting that maybe it’s not such a bad thing. Nostalgia sells.
erinoestringer said
I think you hit the nail on the head, Michelle! When we discussed value today in class, we weren’t talking the price at which it was purchased or the resell value. We were discussing what you said here. The sentimental “old stuff”, the nostalgia, the ebay finds… They are all far more valuable than what was originally attributed to them, or what to someone without the same shared interest would pay. Not everyone would pay triple fold for an old school Beetles vinyl but, darn it, I would easily.
daniellecraig462 said
Your example using Star Wars made a lot of sense to me. I agree that the consumers/audience are the ones who decide what will be the next big thing and what will stay popular over time. When something that is dear to people gets changed around (like Disney taking over LucasFilms) it may cause dissatisfaction and, in turn, cause them to lose interest and make the item less popular. Or it may have the opposite effect. Change can always lead to something becoming more popular among audiences or consumers. Like you said, it all depends on taste.
beealexandria09 said
This blog hit everything on the nose! The examples you used were right on point. TASTE is key. If plently of people jump on the bandwagon…there is a whole line of people doing the same thing.
classypassi said
I feel like my point of view is oddly similar to Spreadable Media… it makes things easy for me to understand when I can reiterate them with personal examples. I’m glad you all can understand my rambling of blogs.
I believe anything valuable is determined by whomever is consuming it. The whole “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” is probably what I should have named this blog piece.
samford said
Some great points made here, and a hopeful sign that you all had a great discussion with Ted last Thursday. (He sent a good report…) I have a friend who used to be a buyer for Saks. That was her job…to know what was on the tip of cultural relevance and to make sure that Saks carried it…at least, what was considered the trend for their particular audience….But slow culture are the trends that can be harder to catch but may also have deeper relevance. The organic food movement and the rise of the coffee house (and now of the food truck) are all examples I’ve seen others point toward as slow movements in our culture that seemed to “come out of nowhere” to some but have been developing for some time. (See the work of Grant McCracken in Chief Culture Officer for more on this.)
andyarnoldpopculture said
Nostalgia itself is a trend. People love being reminded of a “better” past, which is why vintage clothes and trendy toys from past generations will almost always manage to boomerang into relevancy again. As for which artifacts are chosen to acquire meaning again, I can’t say. It’s fascinating to think that Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins were both popular novelists, but only Charles Dickens is considered a literary master, while poor Collins was sent to obscurity.