Jeramy won a $50 Target gift card and gave it to me. I was instructed to use it toward items that we would normally purchase at our usual shopping stores (ALDI, Sam's Club & Walmart). So, off I went. Everyone loves free money, right?!
Buying a few items was a no-brainer. I bought several hair care products and some much needed toddler spoons, toddler toothbrushes and toddler underwear. However, after a few minutes looking around, I found myself in quite a predicament. All the exact same items (except the spoons) could be found at my local Walmart for a significant difference in price. How could I buy Item X for $16 when I could get the exact same thing at Walmart for $11?
And because of this I now found it extremely difficult to use the remainder of the "free" money in Target. I see now the deception. People pay more for these items thinking they are getting a better quality product, when in fact, it is the same quality as at Walmart (or ALDI or Sam's). Why pay more if you're not getting more? For the same amount of money, I could have purchased more items at Walmart than at Target. I'm ruined. I can no longer pay more for anything if I know I can get it cheaper somewhere else. Ethically, I view it as a waste of money. Jeramy works too hard to bring home what he does and I work too hard to stretch what he brings home to spend more than is necessary. I don't think I'll ever buy anything at Target again.
Don't get me wrong, Target provides a nice, quiet, clean environment in which to shop. But I just can't buy anything there. I'll deal with lines and crowds to save $10. As Jeramy would say, "It's all about the bottom line."
