Just Buy Nothing: A fake online store to combat shopping addiction

https://justbuynothing.com/

104•Improvement•2h ago

Comments

dmoy•1h ago

So it's like nicotine patches? Gives you a similar dopamine hit without the wallet hit?

thatxliner•1h ago

This is a pretty good idea but what if we simulated actual store UI such as Amazon

ronsor•52m ago

>what if we simulated actual store UI such as Amazon

A phone call from Amazon lawyers.

AndrewKemendo•52m ago

When people buy, you should send them a postcard to close the dopamine loop.

In my experience the majority of compulsive shoppers like getting a box almost as much as whatever is in it

mgkimsal•48m ago

Worked in a mall in the 90s and thought a store that let people 'shop' but not actually pay money for things might be fun/useful. Or... sort of like a membership. $10/month, come in to some luxury type store - browse, test out stuff, etc. Go through a 'checkout' step with your 'store card', just... leave the items in the store as you leave. For some folks, the leaving and driving away is the 'high', but for a lot of folks, the 'purchase' itself is the high, and it's downhill after that. I saw so many people buying things they shouldn't buy - and that was over 30 years ago(!). I know it's only become worse over the years.

FWIW - my idea was possibly sort of dumb, but I was a bit of a dumb kid at times... :)

mockingloris•3m ago

There are utilities to your idea and by that virtue, Just Buy Nothing. With a bit of contributed enhancements this could actually solve a niche problem. I'm already imagining a situation where you can opt in for a discovery/assessment after checkout; each item is assessed for utility of need vs want and whether a smaller or less expensive replacement could meet the same needs. At the end of this, a user could come off with a smaller basket that they could then take to a real shopping site and or be charged for the session. Privacy has to be nailed quickly though. Closing remarks: AI could help in the aspect of scaling the discovery/analysis with users. This was about 15 minutes of thought. There's something here for sure.

Null-Set•45m ago

Does it track my behavior to sell it to advertisers of less whimsical storefronts?

initramfs•44m ago

this is brilliant

redhale•43m ago

I have found that adding things to a todo (Todist) list called "want-to-buy" gives me the little endorphin boost / anxiety relief without spending any money. I periodically go through and delete stuff from this list after time has passed, and I'm always glad I didn't go through with the purchases. Rarely I will come across something I truly do still want, and will purchase it.

patrickscoleman•41m ago

I do this with just an ever expanding notes file. Works!

mikepurvis•33m ago

I do this as well, it’s especially good for media purchases like blurays and video games. Eventually there’s a sale or I just realize I don’t actually care or want to see/watch it any more.

coffeecoders•40m ago

I think this could work if it was more than just a static site with no description page. Give it description pages with gallery, reviews etc.

FollowingTheDao•36m ago

This is like cigarettes and coffee for ex-alcoholics.

abhinai•35m ago

I'd heavily expand on the selection. Maybe even make them AI generated with beautiful designs so people can go through an endless catalogue. Dream. You may be on to something and this may be bigger than your original idea. You could help people dream about stuff that does not exist.

netsharc•22m ago

Hah, an AI-generated page of specs would give me a mental boner.. "This floorp Deluxe comes with 512 zroom fleex cores, plus 768 of the latest-gen 4nm-process QPU...".

cnst•32m ago

I try to combat the shopping addiction by ensuring for every purchase, (1), that the price is really good, (2), that the quality is actually really good, too.

For example, $149 for a great monitor is a great deal. But it has to be IPS, USB-C, DP 1.4, QHD or higher, 400nits etc. Normally, these retail for $599, so, I don't buy. Many monitors retail for $99, but they're FHD 250nits VGA crap.

Slickdeals.net is a nice website where you can find some of these deals. Keep in mind that even for really good deals, some people over there would still be unhappy and would still expect higher specs or lower price, so, you have to use your own judgement whether something is good or not. Recently missed a 32in 4K UHD monitor at 159.99 because it was a VA, and people complained too much that VA sucks, but the rest of the specs were just too good, and it sold out quickly; OTOH, I can now wait for a better deal!

RyanOD•30m ago

I resist buying many things by thinking about my kids having to (some day) deal with it when I kick the bucket.

hilsdev•8m ago

I started buying silver, platinum, and gold coins. Itches that “get shiny” scratch, and I’ve been profitable enough to not regret collecting something. After I got started, I became a calmer, more rational investor in the digital realm. Something about the physical weight of the silver unlocked some “it’s all okay” mechanism in my brain. It felt drug like, a chemical change.

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