AIBU to think decent quality household goods are hard to find?

[Numbchill]

I moved house recently, needed little bits and bobs, soap dish, some cushions, garden hose, other things. I live rurally so buy online. Almost everything I ordered has arrived and it’s cheap tat. I’m so sick of it. I spend a little or I spend a lot and it makes no difference. Low quality tat is what I receive. What can I do to try to get a quality product these days? I even bought an Apple iphone case for my sister from John Lewis the other day and that was tat too - for £50! It’s already falling apart, but according to JL that’s fine because it’s protecting the phone by doing that (?), so even JL customer service is terrible too.

What lengths do we have to go to to get good quality goods these days? Does anyone have any tips?

Who are you buying from?
I tend to buy from Lakeland and Dunelm for good quality household stuff.

People have spent the last 20 years buying crap from China and not realising how expensive well made products have become. massive inflation has made it worse, labour cost inflation particularly - you have to spend so much.

We are all worse off too.

I think you would do better to made a day of it and go to somewhere in person to browse.

For phone cases I buy Otterbox brand & they are good

You have to buy stuff that isn't made in China which is impossible. Soap dish I suppose you could comission a lclocal pottery person and pay £500 😁 cushions you could go to the WI and task an army of embroiderers to make some.

No idea about a hose.

I don’t know about this. Some of my Ikea and dunelm stuff has lasted years.

Find a good independent shop, go and look there.
Or buy secondhand for cheap items that don't matter much - a soap dish would be £1 in a charity shop.

I don't recognise what you say about hosepipes - our midrange Hozelock thing has done a decade so far.

Same here. All our stuff comes from IKEA, supermarkets, Dunelm etc and it lasts forever.

Part of me sometimes wishes our stuff 'would fall apart after 5 minutes' as is so common on MN because after 20 or 30 years you sometimes get fed up of the same old plates or mugs and would like to be able to allow myself to buy the cute new ones I saw in Dunelm.

I paid about £3 for a phone case on ebay and that's perfectly fine too. Will last the average 4-6 years until I next change my phone at least.

About the hoses. I don't do online but have still been shocked at the way so-called reputable Aussie brands, looking at you, Pope, are utter shit. They kink and split all the time. Especially the ones that say, "non-kink" or "made for the Aussie sun".

Aldi do good ones, or at least are cheaper, but you have to wait for their centre aisle specials on gardening gear, several times a year in Oz, probably similar in the UK.

I’ll have to try Dunelm. There’s one about 40 mins away. I did get some good things from Lakeland too. Really disappointed in JL, but hey they’ve been going downhill for a while I think.

I also hate it when you want something fairly standard like a white t-shirt, have a look on the next website and they try to flog you things from 1001 different brands that you’ve never heard of and have no idea of the quality of.

Garden hoses DH has had a hozelock one for years and years and its fine. He just bought a second one for the sprinkler last year & it appears to be very similar quality to the older one

It’s not for everyone, and it’s not always possible, but I try to buy in person for things I want to last, then I can feel and touch them. I don’t buy from Shein, Temu or Amazon either. And you can find good things in the oddest places - I buy a lot of soaps from the National Trust, I got a beautiful soap dish and some baking stuff from a maker’s market, and my two garden centres are independent ones with decent buyers.

I agree. I think that so many goods are shoddy because they are bought unseen. If you saw them in a shop you wouldn't buy them, especially clothes.

I much prefer shopping in person for that reason, although I will buy branded electrical goods online after much careful research and have had no issues so far.

OP we have decided to try and source things a bit more purposefully. We buy British as much as possible too or if it’s textiles where it’s made from an ethical source. It’s a pain to add that much time to research but we have found we get better quality stuff and not Chinese made crap.

I have had exactly the same thought in recent years. I feel like things are sort of fake. They look like the product they're supposed to be but just don't last and often don't even serve the function they're supposed to provide. The levels of waste is unbelievable. I really think there need to be some regulations introduced on the production of just utter rubbish, it's totally immoral. False economy too as, yes something of higher quality would cost more but it might last 20 or 30 years as opposed to having to buy the same item every year or so.
I have had the same feeling about where on earth can you actually buy decent quality goods if not at the traditional retailers anymore?? I think PP mentioning craftspeople, potters etc is on the right track although I don't agree that they're always even that pricey.

I’ve actually just found my aforementioned soap dish online - £20 which is reasonable, I’m supporting an independent artist, and it’s one of my absolutely favourite possessions. www.annebarrell.co.uk/product/mussel-shell-soap-dish/

JosephJoseph kitchen stuff is good quality and well designed IME.
DIY stores sell better quality bathroom accessories and you can touch before you buy.
I’ve given up on M&S homeware because anything below the top of their range is “showy but shoddy”, at that point go to Primark!
Can’t help on garden hoses or phone cases,I’m afraid.

On the Next website, you can filter out brands, so you can choose which brands you look out.

I think TKMaxx is great for things like this, so much choice and some great brands. I recently got some cushions in TKMaxx handmade in India, beautiful material and great quality only £25 each!!!

For a quality garden hose you can't beat Gardena.
Our Hozelock gave years of excellent service but the Gardena is on another level. Does the job perfectly and is obviously going to last a very long time.
Cheapest place to buy was Costco, was £30 cheaper than other suppliers for the same item.

As for everything else, it is a case of shopping around I am afraid and when you find a trusted supplier.... stick with them.

We bought a soap dish for 50p from B and M a few years ago, and it is the best designed soap dish we have ever had. Yes it is plastic, but it is designed so that as the water drains off the soap it is directed into the sink so the soap does not go soft and soggy. Not seen it since bought it, and not seen anything like it in better quality material.

What's up with the phone case @Numbchill

Can't understand people saying that?Dunelm stuff is good quality! Maybe their Sanderson range but their own stuff i - textiles, homeware - is not great. Maybe i am just old and comparing it with the quality of things you used to be able to buy for a reasonable price.

I suppose part of the problem is that good stuff is expensive now. Thats probably why Denby folded. I have had decades of use from mine so cost per use has been minimal, unlike cheaper stuff that chips pretty quickly.

Amazon is very much hit and miss. You need to look through reviews carefully and even so it’s not a guarantee.
I try to do as much as possible in person. Dunelm is ok and Sainsburys. Tbh even Screwfix and B&Q can have good desks the key is to look in person.
I feel your pain because I want to go in with a list and to buy , I don’t want spend my weekends hunting for items one by one.

I haven't had any issues. Mind you, a lot of what I buy is branded.

I agree with a pp that Joseph Joseph products are well designed.