The notion that experiences are more desirable than objects is one that’s been doing the rounds for a while now. The rise of the ‘Experientialists’, as James Wallman calls them, has been spearheaded by the over-sharing millenials of Instagram.
Those in the know are increasingly showing off about the poached egg pop up they’ve queued two hours to get into or the new immersive theatre experience they’ve endured / enjoyed. Long gone are the days when your followers simply wanted to salivate over your new Celine Trapeze handbag (though there’s still a tonne of style bloggers out there if that’s your thing).
Whilst most would agree that it can only be a good thing to better oneself with a plethora of wonderful travel / gastronomic / entertainment treats, the reality is doing this cool new stuff usually costs a fair packet. This is where Wallman argues that the same joy can be found through simple, free or low cost pleasures – going for a walk in the park, building a den with the kids, meeting up with a long lost friend…
To illustrate, case studies are profiled – this is where it starts to get a little far-fetched, a little bit ‘middle class hippy’. One of these tells the story of a French / Anglo family living in a well heeled area of South London. They decide to give up their riches – experiences with the kids are better after all – jack in their (successful) jobs, pull their kids out of school and set off on a Phileas Fogg adventure around the world. All pretty free-spirited until you realise the three storey house they own is likely to be worth a cool £2m with a hefty monthly rental income – more than enough to tie-dye (sorry) them over whilst they’re away. Mum and dad also still have their fingers in a few profitable pies back home which they manage from their Macbooks whilst watching the sunset over Sri Lanka, or whatever far flung destination they’ve arrived at that week.
Whilst some of the case studies are difficult for most people to relate to, the idea of just not having so much stuff is surely one that most of us can get on board with. After all having less stuff ultimately means spending less money, having more space, not having to pack a gazillion boxes if you move AND doing your own little bit to help the planet.
As extreme as some of the ‘Stuffocation’ ideas are, the philosophy must have sunk in a little here at Shurgard – a number of desks are looking unusually clutter free and ASOS deliveries are definitely down this month. This is great news as it means we all have a little more space and a little more money to put towards that Celine handbag – after all the new season’s collections will be out soon.
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