I don't know if this is just a social media thing, but I see shorts of people with , for example, a Starbucks and they're ranting about how much it costs.
Most recently in my Fb feed, I'm seeing posts from Bulgarians and some expats posing pics in a ski town called Bansko, complaining what a rip off it is, how the coffee is like 8 euros (reminder, Bulgaria is not LA and coffee here is like a euro, apart from Starbucks).
And I honestly don't get it, like, just don't buy the coffee, take a thermos, vote with your wallet, but instead, people pay the price they don't like, then post about it.
Surely economic theory says that if people refuse to pay, the vendor would have to adjust their prices? Or is it all one big social media flex / rage bait?
I've complained about the price of coffee, that I still purchased, before.
I'd explain myself in this way: I still bought it because it was still worth the price for me. I needed a place to sit and work in a specific geographic location, and I was willing to buy an overpriced drink for that privilege.
What the complaint really reveals: the price increases are forcing a more difficult choice on me. Whether I choose to not buy the drink and look elsewhere, or whether I choose to buy the drink, my utility is worse off than it was before due to the price increase.
What does "overpriced" mean?
There are two ways in which I may call something overpriced:
The second one seems more useful as a definition
was it a social media complaint, though? also, out of curiosity, is there an upper limit to how much you would pay for coffee before you would never buy it again?
Does complaining about it on the Stacker Saloon count? :D
Well, for that particular shop, I didn't go there again. I found another place to sit down next time. Though, to be honest, it was as much because of the crowds as because of the price.
Portion is definitely bragging rights and peacocking and fake outrage... omg look at me I'm skiing and have you seen how expensive!
WSJ recently did a deep dive into the ski industry: https://www.wsj.com/video/series/in-depth-features/how-vail-changed-the-economics-of-the-entire-ski-industry/76B54497-21C5-4820-981E-CC3FB02C9970
I thought it was pretty on point. Skiing feels lame now, super crowded, like Disney Land
god lord. Thanks heavens we have a small, unknown little 2-run mountain in my village...nobody will find us!
First, there's a selection problem: you don't hear/see these complaints from the people who did what you propose.
Second, I imagine some people wish they had taken steps to avoid the expense beforehand, but in the moment would rather have the coffee than not, so they're sort of mad at themselves but directing it at the vendor.
Then there are the people who derive satisfaction from complaining about their plight in life. The coffee may not be worth eight bucks to them, but the coffee plus getting to complain to their friends is worth it.
That's my conventional economics take on the situation.
The internet in general has this problem to a much greater degree than people realize.
Imagine you manufacture toaster ovens. You build 1M units and sell them on amazon. 10 of them catch fire and burn down peoples houses, the other 999,990 units function fine.
The social media, amazon reviews, etc will all skew heavily negative mainly because no one bothers to write a review if they buy a toaster and it toast their bread. However the 10 people who lost their houses will all write scathing reviews.
That makes sense, since I'm only seeing the complainers, and all the other people that are balls deep in 8 euro coffee might be living their best life.
all social media is fake rage bait faggotry...chinese bot armys, russian bot armys, and inflooincers milking boomer fiat advertisers and gullible consoomers
why, oh why is anyone on these retarded platforms
I think this is due to people's foolishness.
IMO
Haha, yeah, this feels more like social media theater than economics in action. People love complaining for the attention/validation, even when they could just walk away. Voting with your wallet seems too boring for a viral clip.