To think that if we’re making all this money but not showing it off… what’s the point?

‘Reclaiming something that once felt out of reach’ is a line which really stood out for me, and is one of the reasons that newly wealthy people often care about designer labels, fancy cars etc whereas people with family wealth will often wear scruffy old clothes and wellies. It’s about status.

Material wealth in the most part is based on what the heart wants rather than good financial choices. Depreciation assets aren’t a good investment unless you plan to use them for an extended period of time. Which often isn’t the game of retailers and they’d like you to give them your money frequently.

If you love something it’s ok to buy it. I’d rather spend on travel. It feels worth it for the memories even though it’s not a good investment.

Yes I agree with this.

I actually am possibly a bit contrary- because I like driving around in my old banger knowing perfectly well that i can afford a nicer car if i chose.

Yesterday though I saw an acid green Aston Martin 4wd and confess i googled the price... over £200k! I'd be scared to take it out the garage.

One of the women in my bookclub is fairly wealthy and she certainly likes boasting about it all. TBH I just roll my eyes.

Why do you want to show off like a peacock?
Look at me I can afford an expensive bit of dead cow shaped into a bag to put stuff in.
Well yes, buy whatever you want with your money but posting about it and actively showing off is crass and ugly.
There will always be people richer and always people poorer. Just because you drive a new Mercedes doesn't mean you are a good person, you could be a drug dealer, a pimp, a busines man who has spent the company pension pot.
Nothing about someone who drives a nice car or had an expensive bag impresses me or makes me think more of them.
I am saying this as someone who is a high earner and drives a nice car and has an expensive bag. These things are for me only, not to show off, I also buy from charity shops too and am just as happy in my Lidl jeans I bought for a tenner. Actually their jeans are really good, ten times better than my 100 quid pair😁

I mean why does anyone use social media at all nowadays? I'm genuinely curious.

I can totally understand the appeal of showing off, OP. I used to work in a luxury hotel in Central London and we had loads of glamorous and fabulous guests staying. They all had this inexplicable aura. Maybe it's self-assurance?

People on MN can say all they want about how tacky and vulgar showing off wealth is, but in the real world, those types of people are given royal treatment (yes, i know many people just want to be in their sphere because they're rich). I think it would be quite fun to experience that at least once.

If you can’t enjoy your life without wanting to show off about what you’ve got then your life sounds pretty empty.

You can surely enjoy it all without what would once have been called ‘vulgar display’.

You can enjoy your things without acting in a way that would upset others. Especially when others may have had worse luck- an illness at the wrong time, less lucky in their first employer - whatever. Visibility - oh look at me - is pretty immature.

i have never had anyone shame me even though i do have a nice car and holidays. That you have makes me suspect you are bragging, boasting. Not just having the nice thing but making a thing about it

Well, I have absolutely zero interest in designer clothes/shoes, jewellery or handbags. I don't want a mansion or a fleet of flash cars. When I win the lottery - that's "when", not "if" - I'll buy a small house in a nice area and a Susuki Jimny 😊

Enjoy your wealth, by all means. But why would you buy stuff you don't even like, just to get other people's validation. Seems to me like a clear recipe for unhappiness.

Wealth is great in the sense that it allows you to be deb-free, set up for life financially, being financially stress-free and being able to enjoy a lot of paid activities that are out of reach for most people nowadays. That to me is the point of wealth.

Can't think of anything more pathetic than being wealthy solely for the sake of showing off.

I enjoy using my money to obtain quality items, but I don’t value flash. A good quality car or bag that meets your exact needs is what matters, whatever price point that requires.

It's not illegal to show off, it's a very effective way to demonstrate lack of class.

I generally find people with a constant need to show off their designer shit and lifestyles are usually fairly unhappy underneath it. Material wealth does not represent happiness and really that, at the end of the day ( along with health) are the only important things. Buy all the crap that you want and show it off but I would just assume you are probably really struggling and unhappy.

My aunt has alot of wealth and because she came from humble beginnings she can't help tell anyone she meets how wealthy she is. It's her whole personality. Every conversation devolves to cash.

Goes on holiday, no chat about the cuisine or culture, its how much everything cost. Buys some designer clothes, no chat about the style it's how much it was. It's tedious in the extreme and not through a lens of envy, just simply It's a shallow relationship and conversational style, and a real shame as probably shows low self esteem.

Cash not class, I'd call it.

Wealth can enrich your life and enjoying that financial security, ability to enjoy luxuries, and the calm, gratitude and peace that should accompany it would seem reward enough to those who class themselves as financially wealthy.

Sharing to express pleasure at time you spent with your family, your partner etc are quite understandable.

Sharing to try to make others envious or jealous is sad. WHY do you feel the need to show off? Attention seeking is never attractive or aspirational. Quite the opposite.

This single post exemplifies the difference between new money and old money so perfectly that it should be studied

Money talks; wealth whispers.

Couldn't agree more.

But if you are 'sharing' these 'celebrations' online with total randoms or people you hardly know... how is that sharing? Or celebrating? It's not... it's showing off. And showing off, imo, is tacky.

Who’s stopping you?

It would totally go over my head personally but that’s me.

Certainly this is the case in Britain. I think it varies across different cultures.

What? Just live within your means and enjoy your life. Why care so much about what others think? Surely you’re spending time with people on a similar financial level, anyway?

Wear the bag you like. Drive the car that works for your lifestyle. Stop looking sideways.

V.random post. Nobody expects you to hide your wealth. E.g wear the bag, go on holiday, drive the car. I think the thing that is tacky is making a song and dance about it not the having it or it being visible.

I'm very fortunate to have nearly £700k in the bank after a couple of inheritances. Not that anyone I know IRL has any idea. I drive a 6 year old budget car and like buying clothes from Sainsbury's. I am not mean in any way and am happy to spend money on my adult daughters, giving to charity or buying anything I really want. It's just that in my 60s unfettered materialism has lost its shine for me. I come from a background where ostentatious displays of wealth or talking about money were considered tacky and a bit vulgar. If I see people swanning about in overpriced designer gear I actually feel a bit sorry for them - that they are so desperate for everyone to know their financial situation.

However live and let live and do what makes you genuinely happy.