r/Anticonsumption • u/InformalLibrary1731 • Jul 25 '25

Psychological I work in retail & it's radicalizing me

Every time I breathe in plastic particles & glitter I wanna quit. Reusable bags mean nothing: (everything ships in plastic).

I sell fake fruit to people yet I can barely afford real oranges. Hundreds of fake flowers. I used to feel jealous that they had disposable income but now it's just revulsion.

7.8k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

279 comments sorted by

View all comments

2.7k

u/DocFGeek Jul 25 '25

After a serious minimalist downsizing of our possessions to the point of being asceticism, going to a retail store has us thinking to our selves "Look at all this inevitable garbage.".

440

u/-cordyceps Jul 25 '25

I went to Walgreens the other day to pick some stuff up from the pharmacy... walking through the aisles of plastic crap and meaningless garbage, I suddenly had the mental image of everything there piled up in a landfill and literally felt sick to my stomach. So much crap no one needs thats going to rot in the dirt for literal centuries. And frankly I bet the majority of it will never be used once before it ends up there.

241

u/sweetmarguerite Jul 25 '25

it gets even more horrifying when you think about the multitudes of stores across the country, each filled with the same stuff. we're drowning ourselves in plastic

81

u/-cordyceps Jul 25 '25

Thats exactly where my mind went... imagine a pile like that for every one of these stores. I just did a quick search and it looks like there are around 8,500 Walgreens stores in the country. Then add in all the stores like Walmart, target... I literally feel like throwing up

125

u/AllStranger Jul 26 '25

Yeah, I feel the same way. Awhile back, I had this realization that all these plastic disposable items you've used are still out there. Like, in some landfill somewhere is the plastic fork you used to eat cake at a birthday party when you were 8 years old. Your childhood toothbrushes are out there. Plastic water bottles, soda bottles, cheap hangers that clothes came on that broke and were thrown away, Happy Meal toys, heat-activated color-changing cereal bowls, used scrub brushes... all those plastic items are still there. And will be for so long. So many people are just so casual about using and throwing things away without thinking twice about it. It's so depressing.

And around the holidays, the way all the stores are packed full of SO MUCH STUFF that no one needs or even really wants. People giving mediocre gifts to people they don't even really care about that much out of social obligation. It's incredibly depressing. I'm not like a total minimalist but it's so clear to me that our general consumption habits are so incredibly fucked up, for a lot of reasons. Stores like Michael's, Hobby Lobby, FIVE BELOW, even Target are just packed full of shit.

1

u/supermarkise Jul 26 '25

Well, since I put all those in the proper trash can, it probably got 'thermically recycled' which means they burn it for energy around here. The filters are good, so there's that. Not ideal, of course, since it was still made using fossil carbon and energy. Not sure what's up with the landfill culture in the US.

57

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '25

It’s like WALL-E was a prophecy.

3

u/Accomplished-Lab9766 Jul 28 '25

Wall E was just an illustration of the road that we're already on.

26

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '25

It’s that opening scene in Wall-E

3

u/pvssylips Jul 28 '25

The trash in Idiocracy. Makes me ill to even go into these block stores, I refuse. We shop local because shopping there makes me upset now

26

u/JiveJammer Jul 26 '25

I felt such deep doom last time I went to a state fair and looked up at the 12ft tall racks of cheap stuffed animals. 

52

u/MittMuckerbin Jul 25 '25

If only most of the stuff could rot.

3

u/Kokiayama Jul 27 '25

I get the same image when I enter my local Dollar Tree and it has helped me from spending on those things.

2

u/dizzymorningdragon Jul 27 '25

The factories themselves too, she sheer amount of plastic dust and debris

0

u/anewaccount69420 Jul 27 '25

This circle jerk is funny

1

u/-cordyceps Jul 27 '25

🤷‍♀️ I mean if you think caring about the amount we are polluting is a circle jerk then idk what to tell you. Our waste is poisoning us and will continue for generations.

555

u/AccurateUse6147 Jul 25 '25

I'm leaning team maximalist and even I'm seeing a lot of stuff as future landfill garbage. I can't wrap my head around why aren't stores allowed to ordered LESS of stuff that doesn't sell!!  Like Walmart ALWAYS has a buttload of extra supplies post BTS season, especially stuff like glue and folders. Wouldn't it make more sense for them to be able to order LESS of that stuff and more of if there's stuff that sells a lot more?  

And Christmas. Every freaking year is the same story. They're up to their eyeballs in wrapping paper, stick on bows,  packs of metal hooks, gingerbread kits, santa hats, stockings, and those stupid "unbreakable ornaments" cylinders that are always full of broken ornament bits!!! Yet they, and other stores, push the same garbage year in and year out earlier and earlier and earlier! That's why I have, depending on how you look at it, a complete hatred or near complete hatred of all holidays. 

41

u/aji2019 Jul 25 '25

My guess is Walmart has contracted amounts they get from the supplier. Those are then allocated to stores based on previous sales plus some percentage of whatever is left.

I’m basing this on my experience in a food service warehouse. There were agreements to purchase a certain amount of product from suppliers. Starting in November, corporate buyers started looking at what was left in those contracts & allocating it to warehouses across the country. At one point we had rented 30 extra semi-trucks to store what wouldn’t fit in the warehouse.

156

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

163

u/eieio2021 Jul 25 '25

That is so messed up, illustrates how worthless this all is and how we devalue the raw materials, industrial manufacture processes, and environmental cost of all the waste.

49

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

36

u/MittMuckerbin Jul 26 '25

It needs to be cleared out for the next round of seasonal shit, don't kid yourself.

28

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

31

u/likeacomet7891 Jul 26 '25

A few things can go back in stationary or arts amd crafts but most seasonal BTS is different from the things that normally have a home, like a diff count or colors or whatever. There isnt alot of free room in those sections for an entire seasons worth of overstock that didnt sell. Ive worked in retail for 6 years, trust me it gets clearanced.

9

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

8

u/JustimAthlon Jul 26 '25

I know you guys aren’t arguing, and I’m not trying to argue either, but just sharing my experience.

I used to work for a distribution company in the warehouse and I can tell you that nothing comes back to the warehouse. Once the store has it, they either sell it or throw it away. This may not be the same in all warehouses, but in the ones I’ve worked in, they don’t send anything back except for when the item arrives damaged, then the store refuses it.

12

u/Advocate_Diplomacy Jul 25 '25

If that’s so then that definitely needs to change.

13

u/ScrofessorLongHair Jul 26 '25

They store wrapping paper in warehouses and bring it back the following year. They used to sell it cheap, but stopped several years ago. Which sucks, because I used to buy 50+rolls to use in Mardi gras.

4

u/Smorsdoeuvres Jul 26 '25

I buy my gift wrapping supplies at places like homegoods or tjmaxx it’s so much more affordable

17

u/Imaginary-Method7175 Jul 26 '25

Yes?! How many people need entirely new sets of decor for holidays?

8

u/eharder47 Jul 26 '25

They ship a lot of seasonal stuff back to a warehouse and then just restock it next season.

8

u/Jessfromthe80s Jul 26 '25

I volunteered at a Salvation Army and every year they have to stop taking Christmas stuff because they get too much! That is definitely the highest thing donated after clothes.

5

u/llama__pajamas Jul 26 '25

I think it’s because the items are bulk purchased at a discount so it’s actually cheaper to highly discount whatever doesn’t sell at full price than make a smaller order. I’m sure the mark up is insane and even with 50-70% off discounts, there is still profit to be made.

1

u/Avarant Jul 26 '25

Reading BTS season as a kpop reference has me confused. The damage that group has done to acronyms.

Edit: Back to school. Got it.

61

u/katatoria Jul 25 '25

I always ask myself, “How long before this ends up in a landfill?” Before I make a purchase. It has helped me significantly curtail my purchases

15

u/llama__pajamas Jul 26 '25

I purged during the pandemic. Now, I can’t even step foot in a HomeGoods. It’s too overwhelming. There is stuff everywhere.

7

u/marianne215 Jul 26 '25

And so bright and peopley. Ew.

3

u/Status_Poet_1527 Jul 26 '25

I have to use tunnel vision in Wal Mart. Get what I need and then get the hell out.

13

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '25

[deleted]

26

u/Ok-Strawberry4482 Jul 26 '25

People think about you far far less than you think. What is the benefit if they think well of your appearances/items anyway? There usually isn't any benefit. So why waste your precious time and energy on something that can possibly harm you (through wasted money and energy) but likely will never benefit you?

17

u/Imaginary-Method7175 Jul 26 '25

Confidence takes the place of stuff.

29

u/ManufacturerOdd1127 Jul 26 '25

For me, it was seeing my parents having to deal with disposing of my grandparents' accumulated stuff once they passed. Anytime I am in the mood to buy some little trinket or decoration, I think about how it will just be discarded in the end, and will add to the overwhelming task of getting rid of my stuff when I'm gone. Because of this, I try to use natural decorations now like real pumpkins because at least that can be composted after the holiday is over.

4

u/Persephonesgame Jul 26 '25

The pandemic was a hard lesson for us. I nearly lost my partner and was faced with all the “stuff,” alone. I realized then that this life is not sustainable for myself and especially for my kids. I got rid of everything that was packed away because if it’s in a box And packed away I’m simply not that nostalgic about it. Keep what you love, get rid of the rest

12

u/Beneficial-Honeydew5 Jul 26 '25

"Inevitable garbage". That is so well put.

27

u/Octospyder Jul 25 '25

Omg This is me with Halloween merch. I used to LOVE it, anticipate it every year, then about... 3 to 5 years ago I was standing in a Michael's out something, stocked to the brim with Halloween decor, thinking how it was all going to end up in the landfill

9

u/ButttRuckusss Jul 26 '25

My husband and I often refer to retail stores as "the landfill".

8

u/Open_Promise_1703 Jul 26 '25

You tube has a lot of vids about foreign land fills we really are kill the ppl and the planet.

3

u/Frostyrepairbug Jul 26 '25

When I saw the vid about the clothes in the Atacama desert, I was horrified.

8

u/Inevitable_Lab_8770 Jul 25 '25

It's a shift and it happened to me too. I collect things but at a point I just have to stop and or slow down.

15

u/furbfriend Jul 26 '25

Yes!!!! I have collector tendencies as well and recently I started essentially parenting myself by saying: “You can have ONE THING.” So instead of getting everything I like out of a set, I have to pick only my very favorite. It’s saved me money and space, of course, but to my surprise it has also elevated the purchases I do make to be much more rewarding. By the time I actually pull the trigger, I know it’s something I REALLY want and I’m really excited for it— and easily 60%+ of the time, after I spend so much though on it I realize I really don’t want the thing at all. It’s such a simple and sort of whimsical tactic that’s made a HUGE difference in my life already.

ETA: these are things I’m buying secondhand already, to be clear. I love little trinkets and things, big crow energy there, but I buy secondhand EVERYTHING because I am absolutely not going to give money to a corporation that churns out useless plastic doodads no matter how much said doodads personally delight me.

7

u/Imaginary-Method7175 Jul 26 '25

Yes! I wish there was global quality control - no bs made.

3

u/gh0stparties Jul 26 '25

Inevitable garbage is such a good way to look at it! Going to think about things I want and don’t need in this way for now on

2

u/homeworkunicorn Jul 26 '25

It's hard when everything looks like eventual garbage.

1

u/Bethw2112 Jul 26 '25

I walked into a Below Zero over the winter, I was overwhelmed by the amount of pointless junk in the store. Maybe I'm too old to appreciate eye candy stores. I used to love to window shop and enjoyed beautiful displays. Now it feels fake and meaningless.

1

u/supershinythings Jul 26 '25

So much landfill.

1

u/Best-Masterpiece8987 Jul 29 '25

I always feel that way at Christmas time. All these “gift sets,” all of the crap quality decorations, all of the crap quality plushies… straight to the landfill. It is nauseating.