Sometimes it pays to look beyond the branding

It is often said that we spend money we don't have to buy what we can't ordinarily afford in an attempt to please or impress people we don't know. This is the reality of life for most people such that they are eager to impress strangers by showing off their designer clothes and shoes which they sadly acquired on credit i.e. by borrowing or in some other instances by enaging in acts of illegality or criminality.

Very rcently a guy who had become popular on social media for flaunting his lavish lifestyle as well as wealth met his Waterloo. In one of the videos before his cover was blown, he is seen in pyjamas flashing foreign currency bills while urging his followers or audience to 'hustle'.

This ordinarily wasn't a bad advise except for the skewed definition of 'hustle' in his case. It turns out that the wealth he was flaunting were ill gotten proceeds from his kidnapping escapades. A video which went viral after his apprehension by security operatives showed him begging for leniency on the premise that his wife had just given birth.

This plea drew the rebuke of one of the onlookers who asked him if he had extended such leniency to one of the victims he had kidnapped while beating him (i.e the victim) up during the period of captivity. This is just one of many cases of social media personalities who have branded themselves to be icons of success via genuine effort only to be later exposed to be some sort of fraudster or criminal.

Sadly many people because of the falunting of designer brands by these individuals tend to now put themselves under undue pressure as they have set the flaunting of designer wears as the yardstick for one to be considered successful. Hence for them it is alright to use any means necessary, whether criminal or otherwise to acquire wealth and buy stuff so as to be the centre of attraction.

While it is not a bad thing in itself to acquire designer or branded products , one need not become depressed or become desperate in an attempt to get them. The reality is that some generic products who may not have build a popular name for their brand are just as good even better in some instances than the popular or well known brands.

People are generally willing to pay more for products from a known brand even when there are comparable alternatives from less known brands. For some it's more of maintaining a status symbol to always go for the expensive brands. It's all good if one has the means to maintain such lifestyle but if that isn't the case it's akin to going down the slippery slope of constantly being indebted to maintain a false image of affluence.

While it's a good idea to always want to improve one's financial status and crave for the 'better' things in life, it shouldn't be taken as a do or die affair. People will always be in different classes on the basis of wealth or material possession. That's just the way life is . Thus on order not to pressure oneself unnecessarily to become rich at all costs, it is best to always access oneself and live within one's means.

Popular brands have long understood that there will always be differences in terms of disposable income as 'all fingers aren't equal ' and have tapped into this for their benefit. I know of a smartphone manufacturing company that has different product lines targeting different classes of people.

They have pticy devices that are targeted at the elite, those for the middle class and even those on a meagre budget. So if brand manufacturers can adjust and adapt to the fact we all have different strengths in terms of purchasing power, then what excuse do we have as end users or consumers not to also adapt based on our economic realities while not necessarily totally discarding consideration for quality.

While it is sometimes okay to look beyond branding , there are instances such as in health care products where we may have to give it serious consideration above all else. Brands that have a reputation or name to protect will expectedly do more in terms of quality control and due diligence unlike those that have nothing to lose.

The case of what has now been termed 'killer cough syrups' in circulation in some African countries is a pointer to the fact that sometimes using unknown brands of drugs may come at a price which could be too heavy to bear. The aforementioned pharmaceuticals have taken their toll on 66 babies in Gambia already .

These are the cases that have been traced to the drugs thus far as there are likely to be more pending their total withdrawal or removal from circulation thanks to the efforts of the World Health Organisation in collaboration with health officials across the continent.

Some might argue that unbranded or generic brands of drugs are just as good as the branded ones which are usually and expectedly more expensive. However, the reality is that when push comes to shove , the best bet for optimal results as it pertains to medications remains the tested and trusted brands.