Informed consumerism

By Kang Hyun-kyung

Thanks to profit-savvy startups, consumers have various options to choose from when they're shopping. The sheer number of choices shoppers are faced with when searching for even the simplest of items can be overwhelming.

This is exactly what happened to me the other day when I dropped by a department store on my way home to purchase fish oil. In the food supplements section, there was a wide selection of fish oil brands.

A member of staff approached me, asking if there's a certain product I was looking for. I said I needed “good fish oil” produced in New Zealand. The country is popular with Korean consumers as it has a reputation for having the highest standards on food safety and producing clean, pure, natural food supplements.

I provided further details about the product I was looking for, saying I needed fish oil that can be absorbed more easily than standard products. Nodding, she showed me a local fish oil brand and said, “Then you should take this.” I followed her advice and took two capsules each day from that day. The intake of fish oil made a difference. It worked well for me.

For me, the moment of indecisiveness ended briefly and I was able to get the right product, partly because I knew exactly what kind of supplement I was looking for and partly because the seller was knowledgeable enough to be able to make a recommendation.

This is the art of what I call “informed consumerism.” Consumers know what they are looking for, and give details of their preferences to the sellers. The professionalism of sellers is another core part of informed consumerism, so they need to have a depth of knowledge about what they're selling.

Despite my successful shopping experience, there were certain things that disturbed me a little bit afterwards.

I learned that the same fish oil is being sold on Coupang, at different prices depending on the seller. The cheapest one on Coupang is about half the price of the supplements I purchased at the department store.

The other thing that confused me as a consumer is that price tags don't necessarily reflect the quality of the product.

I've taken fish oil on and off over the past three decades. I tried several different brands but none of them made me feel much of a difference after taking them. So I would often quit taking them and throw out the remaining capsules when they eventually expired.

But this time, I think I will be a loyal consumer of the brand that I recently purchased.

The price of my recently purchased fish oil is cheaper than the one that I consumed before.

A high price tag is not an indicator of the quality of a product, and with the same product being sold at different prices, the unreasonable price tags caused me to think about wise consumerism: How can we, consumers, purchase the right products without paying too much?

Selecting the right products is easier said than done because in cosmetics, for example, there are some 20,000 different brands in Korea. In a situation like this, even knowing which products fit best for us and which product provides the best deal is tough.

Some TV shows, YouTube and other social media channels provide reviews of chosen products to help confused consumers decide on their purchases ― or validate their purchases. Relying entirely on such media to get the appropriate information does not seem to be a good idea, because corporate sponsorship could distort reviews.

I think consumer discretion and informed consumerism may help consumers become wise shoppers.

We live in an age of information. The internet is flooded with all kinds of information, though with the prevalence of fake news, people need to take caution.

Consumers need to invest their time and energy to get a good deal on the right product. For this, they need information about the products they are to purchase and to consider their needs before shopping. My choice of fish oil is an example of informed consumerism. I came across the concept of nutrient absorption as a factor to consider when choosing fish oil because I knew it mattered after watching TV shows and YouTube videos providing health-related information. And it helped me find the right fish oil.