Money Listens

Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing. –Oscar Wilde

This morning I heard a radio commercial for a second-hand clothing store. The tag line at the end was “Value means paying less than you expected to pay.” I started yelling at the radio. No, it’s not. Paying less than you expected to pay is a bargain. Value is much more subjective. Value is paying what something is worth to you. What is a value to you is not necessarily a value to someone else. Don’t confuse price with value.

Tonight Baskin-Robbins® is having a 31 cent scoop night. On Wednesday, April 30th 2008, from 5pm to 10pm, stores will sell small scoops for 31 cents (plus tax). Here’s the reason why (from their website):

A donation of $100,000 will be made by Baskin-Robbins® to the
National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. At select local stores
throughout the country, you may also have a chance to donate to
your local fire station. We encourage you to learn more about the foundation by visiting www.firehero.org.

What’s this got to do with value? Isn’t paying 31 cents for an ice cream cone a good value? Maybe. It’s definitely a good price. But it’s only a value if it’s worth it to you to pay 31 cents for a scoop. Maybe you’re on an eating plan that doesn’t include ice cream. Maybe you’d have to drive several miles to get to a store. Maybe you don’t like ice cream. (I think sorbet is included in the deal). Maybe you’re indecisive and would spend an hour trying to make up your mind what flavor to choose. Just because you know it’s a good price doesn’t automatically make it a good value.

For me, it’s a good value. There’s a store about a mile away. Jamoca Almond Fudge, here I come.

This entry (Permalink) was posted on Wednesday, April 30th, 2008 at 9:33 am and is filed under Food and Stuff That Tastes Good. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response , or trackback from your own site.