Now comes the time of the year when roads are more congested than ever, stores are displaying bare shelves, and forgetting to pack enough underwear is a common occurrence. Back-to-school is a stressful time for everyone, but especially for college students. Whether you’re travelling out of state, hours away from home, or commuting, college is a big adjustment that comes with plenty of stress. However, that stress is only exacerbated by videos for the most expensive items, possibly including a back-to-school bookbag, because the secondhand one you have is no longer “cool” enough. While attempting to prepare for change, the push for the newest and most eye-catching products may add to some first-day jitters.
According to an article by Greenly (Anderson, 2025), between 2010 and 2017, Europe and North America increased their Domestic Material Consumption by 9%, starting at 13.9 billion metric tons to 15.2. In just seven years, we were able to go through nearly 2 billion metric tons of material, and that was the slowest growth of any location in the world. But what does this mean? Considering the rise of social media usage, including apps like TikTok and Instagram, these numbers are projected to increase at an exponential rate. Ads are spreading faster than ever, with many going undercover and not being disclosed as such to the viewers. Currently, we are prematurely borrowing materials from our future, setting us behind. We are using materials that we don’t have right now, which will leave us dry of them in the future.
Rising costs have begun turning consumers away from buying new; however, that has not stopped the rapid growth of fast fashion and short-lived trends. As some of you may have seen recently, or have yourselves hanging in your dorm room, the rise of “Labubu” dolls was no different than any other fast fad. Labubus emerged in 2015, but recently noticed an upsurge in purchases in 2025 due to widespread social media posts and promotions. A similar trend occurred in the 1960s and 70s with lava lamps. The wax and solution-filled bottle was an icon for the psychedelic era, with a small burst of popularity in the 90s, but it is no longer regarded as “in style.”
While it may be hard to turn a blind eye to the newest and greatest products, doing so will result not only in your wallet thanking you, but branching out and going to second-hand or thrift shops will help you to find quality items. So, whether it’s a new backpack, new shoes, or a first-day outfit, there’s no need to go out to big corporations and drop bands when the thrift store is waiting with its doors open wide to give you a product suitable for a lifetime of memories, without breaking the bank. Fill your room with items you’ll actually keep; don’t make it a space for poor product placements. Reduce, reuse, recycle, and don’t fall for every trend you see because more often than not, that cute rug for your room will be cringe and old news in two weeks. You never know, maybe you will find a future family heirloom in your local Goodwill.
