In retrospect, many fads look silly. But they’re typically harmless, and provide a little fun without costing much money. On the other hand, jumping on the bandwagon with certain recent trends—in particular, getting a tattoo or creating an ever-growing earlobe hole for those disc earrings—can wind up costing a pretty penny when the time comes that you wish they’d disappear.
Each holiday season, an especially hot, must-have gift emerges, often triggering behavior by desperate consumers that seems wacky and ugly at the time — and even more so in retrospect. (Example: Some guy made $6,000 selling Zhu Zhu pets on eBay last year.) This year, the behavior surrounding one hot item seems especially extreme — [...]
Most fads are relatively harmless, inexpensive, and, by their very nature, short-lived. Tattoos, however, have become remarkably trendy at the same time they’re as long-lasting as purchases get.
I’m not quite sure why I feel the need to track the Zhu Zhu Pet fad, but I do. (Note to self: File “Zhu Zhu” in the category of “Unresolved Issues,” somewhere between “Never Got Air Jordans” and “Wasn’t Allowed to Go to Beastie Boys Concert in 8th Grade.”) With one week before Christmas, here’s [...]
